CBD AND PARKINSONS EFFECTS AND MANAGEMENT

What is Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinson’s is a neurological disease that affects over 60,000 new patients every year. It is a progressive and degenerative disease that gets worse over time. It may start off as a set of mild tremors, but then will eventually become a full blown condition wherein every movement of the patient will be affected. Parkinson’s Disease (PD) strikes most people post 60. Early onset PD is sometimes seen as early as 50. PD is twice as likely to affect men than women.

What happens

Parkinson’s is a complex chronic condition which is started off because of the death of nerve cells in the brain. When particular nerve cells in the body start malfunctioning, among he first noticeable symptoms are tremors. Hands, feet, and general body movement is often restricted. Along with the constant shaking of the body, there will also be a prominent case of muscle stiffness.

That is why Parkinson’s tremors are so distinct and easily identifiable. People who have previously been able to work and use their limbs to their full capacity are now held back and are unable to do so anymore. Combine this with the constant tremors and added muscle stiffness, makes for a difficult, restrained movement. It can be quite distressing to go through.

 

How CBD can help

Like many different aspects of CBD and the way it works in the body, it can have an almost magical effect on the human body. Here is a video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zNT8Zo_sfwo) that went viral recently where a man affected with severe Parkinson’s is relieved almost instantly and is able to move his limbs and walk and talk almost normally. The relief in his face and body language brings a tear to the eye.

We know it works and can provide real relief to those who are restricted and in pain, but how does it work?

There are a number of neuron’s in the brain that produce dopamine. Dopamine is the rewards hormone. You might have heard it being called the happy hormone as well. The thing about dopamine is that apart from rewarding your body and making it feel good, it also plays an important part in regulating voluntary movement. All the walking, running and handling of objects, everything that you do on your own free will, are also regulated by dopamine.

When dopamine is affected to a certain extent, movement and control of the muscles reduced. CBD is able to help the patient regain most of the control lost early on. In some cases, it has been found to be instantly effective, like the case in the video. The sad thing is that, apart from from a few experimental treatments, there is no real cure for Parkinson’s. Even the experimental treatments do not really cure the patient. As of now, what can be done is managing the symptoms as much as possible. In fact, that is what CBD aims to do. Managing of pain, anxiety and other symptoms are well known in the CBD community. Since PD also deals with pain, muscle stiffness, anxiety, and depressive symptoms, it can be viewed as a symptomatic treatment on the outset.

From the inside

CBD can obviously deal with symptoms from the outside as they happen. What is surprising though is that there is evidence to show that Cannabis can actually slow down the progression of the disease. If you don’t already know, one of the main advantages to using CBD is that it has powerful neuroprotective effects. That means, it protects brain cells. Degeneration of the dopamine producers are often caused by toxic free radicals and other oxidative injury that happens in the brain. CBD is well known to roll back all of those damages. If not reverse, it can at least slow it down. In many cases, this in itself is a big win.

CBD rejuvenates cellular mitochondrial activity, helps with waste disposal in the cell, and recharges the overall health of neurons. While all this might not strictly cure Parkinson’s, it helps the patients live a more controlled and normalized life. For a person suffering from Parkinson’s, that might be as simple as being able to use a spoon without spilling the soup in it.

Apart from CBD, THC rich strains are also known to be one of the most effective antioxidants known. They can help clean out the free radicals that can wreak havoc inside the brain. It helps detoxify the cells, and its anti inflammatory properties can help with the stiffness and pain in the bones and joints. Some of these effects can be readily seen in less than 30 minutes.

For those who suffer from debilitating conditions like Parkinson’s should definitely consider making use of CBD. CBD is known to relieve psychosis and Parkinson’s is a disease that is often seen side by side with it. When used regularly for about four weeks, it has shown significant reduction in such symptoms. Sleeping is another area that patients can see improvements. CBD is known to promote peaceful REM sleep amongst its users. In fact, it is often used just before getting to bed to relax the mind, giving users sleep that does not feel drug induced like most other pain killers and sleeping pills. Since there is no psychoactive high from CBD, it is not dangerous or habit forming.

In several surveys, those who have actually tried CBD and cannabis have reported that it is a lot better than most other forms of non medicine and drug related holistic therapy methods like music therapy, meditation, occupational therapy, and even prayer.

From this brief write up, it is clearly seen that CBD and other forms of cannabis is one of he best and most effective ways to ease the pain of Parkinson’s, both physical as well as emotional. If you, or anyone you know have symptoms of the disease, you might want to try it. Do consult your doctor before using it for symptom management, while it is normally safe to use, you need to get a pass from your physician.