The use of cannabidiol for weight loss gains strength in Brazil
With action on the satiety hormone, cannabis compound is now being experimentally used in weight loss.
Curation and editing by Sechat, with information from O Globo
SAO PAULO - In recent times, there has been an increase in the number of patients with diabetes and chronic pain who have been arriving at the office of nutritionist Marcia Tornavoi in Sao Paulo with a common characteristic: they were obese. The doctor then decided to prescribe cannabidiol as a complementary treatment. And she practically proved a spectacular side effect already documented in various international studies: weight loss with the medicinal cannabis compound.
The use of cannabidiol against obesity is associated with the so-called endocannabinoid system, discovered only about 20 years ago, which is the main protagonist of this therapeutic perspective. It is a group of messenger molecules that act widely in the body in various tissues and organs, such as the nervous, skeletal, cardiorespiratory, adipose, hepatic, gastrointestinal, skin, excretory, and reproductive systems, among others.
When this system is out of control, it hinders the action of others. Cannabidiol regulates it. When the metabolic system is in balance, it reduces appetite, satiety, and cravings for sugary foods, for example. These are combined actions that cannabidiol ends up performing — says the nutritionist, also highlighting the treatment's action against anxiety and hormonal issues.
That's not all. Cannabidiol acts on leptin, a hormone produced by fat cells, which controls appetite and satiety. The two main cannabinoid receptors are called CB1, mainly present in the brain and nervous system, and CB2, which are more in the immune system. In people with obesity, CB1 receptors spread throughout the body, especially in adipose tissue. Italian researchers from the Università degli Studi della Campania Luigi Vanvitell, in Naples, Italy, conducted a study indicating that cannabidiol could block these receptors, thus controlling appetite.
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Another line of research indicates that cannabidiol can convert white adipose tissue into brown, that is, muscles, improving metabolism and increasing energy expenditure, as shown in a study by the Department of Biotechnology at Daegu University in South Korea.
Most people (and many doctors) are still unaware that cannabis aids in the weight loss process. Therefore, patients arrive with other types of diseases, such as insomnia, anxiety, depression, hypertension, and diabetes, and experience weight loss as a side effect.
Cannabinoids also work on the system that controls everything else, helping to reduce other medications, and everything starts moving towards a better balance — says Tornavoi.
Doctor Thais Perlingeiro, who is trained in endocrinology and cannabis medicine, uses cannabidiol as a complement to GLP-1 analog medications against obesity, the most modern class of weight loss drugs. The result is a loss of about 10% of body weight.
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The weight loss results are wonderful. Conventional medication causes nausea, and cannabidiol combats nausea. The treatment is also improved because obesity involves many factors, such as anxiety, inflammation, insomnia... This multifactorial approach is important because it cannot be attributed to just one receptor — she says.
There are still no studies that have isolated a group of obese people and treated them with cannabidiol versus a placebo group to compare the results. Neuroscientist and researcher at the Federal University of Sao Paulo, Renato Filev, explains that one of the existing obstacles to research with cannabidiol is trying to cross-reference information about the endocannabinoid system, which is personalized like a fingerprint, with the various cannabis molecules.
The same illness may require different profiles, different concentrations, different doses. It's not like dipyrone, where 500 mg cures 80% of people's headaches. There are nuances that complicate this strategy. Therefore, currently, the most important thing is for doctors to be prepared to analyze each case and make individualized prescriptions — he says.
Other uses
Cannabidiol is one of over 500 compounds found in cannabis and undoubtedly the most scientifically interesting. Found in small amounts in the stem and leaf of the Cannabis plant, it is not psychoactive or toxic. It does not cause dependence, nor does it alter reasoning. The established and proven uses of medicinal cannabis are for epilepsy, chronic pain, nausea or vomiting caused by chemotherapy, and spasms due to Parkinson's and multiple sclerosis.
Other uses have a moderate, mild, or inconclusive level of evidence, although many doctors and patients are certain of their effectiveness. Therefore, there are studies worldwide for a wide variety of illnesses such as Covid-19, OCD, depression, insomnia, anxiety, substance use disorders, burnout, autism spectrum disorders, psychosis, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders, endometriosis, metabolic diseases such as insulin resistance and glucose intolerance, as well as obesity itself.
The neuroscientist explains that some patients, with epilepsy, for example, are treated with cannabidiol but may need other cannabis molecules, such as THC. Therefore, doses are tested in practice and gradually increased to find the desired dose.
The discoveries of cannabidiol are recent and involve Brazilian scientists. In the early 1960s, Israeli biochemist Raphael Mechoulam isolated the compound's chemical structure. Over a decade, it was thought to be an inactive compound with no specific action. In the 1970s, a Brazilian group led by researcher Elisaldo Carlini (1930-2020) identified the antiepileptic effects.