Study: Cannabinoids May Help Treat Gut Inflammation
There’s “abundant preclinical literature demonstrating the anti-inflammatory effects of cannabinoid drugs in inflammation of the gut”, according to a new study published by the journal Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
For the study, researchers “systematically reviewed publications on the benefit of drugs targeting the endo-cannabinoid system in intestinal inflammation.” They “collated studies examining outcomes for meta-analysis from EMBASE, MEDLINE and Pubmed until March 2017. Quality was assessed according to mSTAIR and SRYCLE score.”
For the study, “51 publications examining the effect of cannabinoid compounds on murine colitis and 2 clinical studies were identified. Twenty-four compounds were assessed across 71 endpoints. Cannabidiol, a phytocannabinoid, was the most investigated drug.”
Researchers found that cannabinoids significantly reduced the disease activity index for colitis. They found “no evidence of reporting bias” among the studies they examined, and report that “No significant difference was found between the prophylactic and therapeutic use of cannabinoid drugs.”
The study concludes by stating; “There is abundant preclinical literature demonstrating the anti-inflammatory effects of cannabinoid drugs in inflammation of the gut. Larger randomised controlled-trials are warranted.”
The full study, conducted by researchers at the University of Nottingham in the United Kingsom, can be found by clicking here.