Parkinson’s disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer’s disease and there is currently no cure for the condition. In Australia, there are approximately 110,000 people living with Parkinson’s disease; with 37 new cases diagnosed every day!
Could CBD oil be of use in protecting the brains of Parkinson’s patients or alleviating their symptoms?
Parkinson’s disease is characterised by the death of the neurons in an area of the brain responsible for controlling movement. At the present time medical intervention is limited to treating the symptoms –
- Tremors
- Stiff Muscles
- Slow Mobility
- Postural Instability
- Weak Facial Muscles (Drooling and Speech)
- Bradykinesia (Temporary Body Freezing)
- Micrographia (small handwriting)
- Trouble Sleeping
- Constipation
- Anxiety and Depression
- Nausea
Living with Parkinson’s is a frustrating challenge at times, but it is still possible to lead a healthy, happy and productive life for many years after diagnosis.
Could CBD help relieve the symptoms of the disease?
As early as 1888, the use of cannabis for treating Parkinson’s has been documented, and today we can examine the scientific evidence…
The compounds of CBD have great potential
By binding with receptors in neurons they can protect them from a range of harmful stimuli. They also have an anti-inflammatory capacity which protect neurons from the damage of oxidative stress – an important factor in Parkinson’ disease.
Observational studies seem to suggest that CBD could improve motor symptoms. In some studies in which CBD was administered, patients reported improvements in some of the symptoms of the disease as well as improvement in some psychotic symptoms and within their sleep patterns.
Unfortunately, observational studies of this kind currently present numerous problems, with researchers unable to control the variables of limited experiments; there is no control group with which to compare studies; and this would require a change in the law, amending the current classification of CBD to make it easier to use in research. This is, however, an emerging area of interest and new products are beingdeveloped internationally to review the evidence of effectiveness of CBD in Parkinson’s disease.
