CBD and alcoholism

Czy cannabidiol Can it help you recover from alcohol addiction?

We hear a lot about the potential of CBD to help recover from addictions, be it from opioids contained in drugs, heavy drugs such as heroin, or in the case of alcohol use disorders. In this post, we will cite some significant preclinical studies that aimed to gain arguments for the use of CBD in people with alcohol use disorders. We will pay attention to the properties of CBD that are important in the treatment of addictions, and we will answer the question - can CBD become a new addiction?

What properties of cannabidiol affect its potential in the treatment of addictions?

CBD – cannabidiol is the best-studied cannabinoid so far. Thanks to the great interest in cannabidiol, and thus numerous studies on its properties and impact on organisms, we know, among others, that CBD acts on the central nervous system. These effects include anxiolytic, analgesic or antipsychotic effects. This includes the effect on cognitive processes, as well as on the elimination of anxiety, allows us to talk about the potential of CBD in the treatment of addictions. In addition, cannabidiol also has a systemic effect, showing antioxidant properties and regulating the body's immune processes.

Cannabidiol and its positive effect on getting rid of addiction - alcoholism

Previous studies on rodents provide strong evidence that cannabidiol can reduce alcohol consumption, the motivation associated with it, as well as the relapse of the disease, i.e. the return to the so-called. alcoholism. CBD can also reduce the feeling of anxiety or impulsiveness that often accompanies this addiction.

One study in ethanol-preferring mice showed that CBD administration reduced the motivation to "get" an alcohol solution [1]. Doses of 30,60, 120 and 8 mg/kg body weight of rats, administered intraperitoneally, were gradually applied. The effect obtained was a decrease in the preference of the 75% ethanol solution (in relation to water) from 55% to XNUMX%. The amount of pure alcohol consumed per day has almost halved.

In another study, rats had to press a lever during 10-minute sessions to obtain a 30% alcohol solution [2]. In this study, CBD was administered in in the form of a gel with a concentration of 2,5% applied to the skin. Rats were adequately accustomed to alcohol, initially for 2 weeks, when the solution was gradually depleted, and then for 10 days with a scheduled dose of ethanol. After this time, alcohol-free sessions were conducted. The rats were then returned to baseline by treatment. The next step was to examine the effect of CBD (15mg/kg body weight administered for 7 days every 24 hours) on the recovery of addiction, which was triggered by pharmacological stress (yohimbine), physical stress (shock) and the addictive factor itself. It turned out that CBD reduced the number of responses to alcohol by up to 50%. The effect proved to be long-lasting as it persisted even 138 days after the CBD treatment phase. A positive effect was also obtained when inducing responses in rats with pharmacological and physical stress.

Thanks to the results of preclinical studies on rodents, we know that CBD can be of great importance in the treatment of alcohol disorders. on the level of drinking in people with disorders, due to the demonstrated effect on consumption, relapse, anxiety and impulsivity, as well as motivation to drink in rodents [3].

 

Cannabidiol and alcohol-related hepatitis

In addition to studies on the positive impact of CBD on recovery from alcohol addiction, there are also studies that have shown that cannabidiol can significantly reduce fatty liver caused by excessive alcohol consumption [4]. Studies have also been carried out on rodents. In the tested mice, fatty liver was induced by chronic and paroxysmal administration of ethanol solutions. It is thanks to the regulation of lipid metabolism and its antioxidant and immune-regulating properties that CBD has proven to be a promising medicine.

Cannabidiol and the reduction of alcohol-induced brain injuries

Alcohol abuse causes damage to neurons in the brain, and causes memory and cognitive dysfunction. Also in this case, the antioxidant and immunomodulatory properties of CBD may mitigate some neuronal damage in the brain or prevent it altogether, as indicated by studies on rats[3].

In one study, ethanol-fed rats that were co-administered with 40mg/kg of CBD were euthanized to measure the amount of degenerated nerve cells. At the end of the experiment, the alcohol-drinking rats lost a significant number of neurons in the hippocampus and entorhinal cortex. When administered along with ethanol, cannabidiol significantly reduced ethanol-induced cell death. [5]

Thanks to the demonstrated wide potential of CBD in the treatment of alcoholism, i.a. in reducing the level of drinking, regulating inflammatory processes in the liver, and also by reducing the degeneration of nerve cells in the brain, cannabidiol seems to be helpful not only for those who occasionally consume large amounts of alcohol that can harm the body, but also may prove to be an ideal medicine for people with diagnosed alcohol use disorders. In order to reach further conclusions, clinical trials on humans are necessary, which are currently lacking.

Is CBD addictive?

At this point, many people will probably ask themselves if CBD helps to get out of addiction, e.g. drinking alcohol, will it not become a new addiction? The answer to this question is – CBD is not addictive. In a study from 2016 [1], the tendency to abuse THC and CBD was compared with a placebo. Cannabidiol turned out to be as addictive as Placebo. Considering the potential of CBD in the treatment of alcohol disorders, proven in preclinical studies, as well as in the treatment of the effects of drinking excessive amounts of alcohol, and the fact that CBD is not addictive, it may turn out that in the near future cannabidiol will be widely implemented in anti-alcohol therapies.

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Sources:

1.  Viudez-Martínez, A., García-Gutiérrez, M.S., Navarrón, C.M., Morales-Calero, M.I., Navarrete, F., Torres-Suárez, A.I., et al. (2018). Cannabidiol reduces ethanol consumption, motivation and relapse in mice. Addict. Biol. 23(1), 154–164. doi: 10.1111/adb.12495

2. Gonzalez-Cuevas, G., Martin-Fardon, R., Kerr, TM, Stouffer, D.G., Parsons, L.H., Hammell, DC, et al. (2018). Unique treatment potential of cannabidiol for the prevention of relapse to drug use: preclinical proof of principle. Neuropsychopharmacology 43(10), 2036–2045. doi: 10.1038/s41386-018-0050-8

3. De Ternay J, Naassila M, Nourredine M, Louvet A, Bailly F, Sescousse G, Maurage P, Cottencin O, Carrieri PM and Rolland B (2019) Therapeutic Prospects of Cannabidiol for Alcohol Use Disorder and Alcohol-Related Damages on the Liver and the Brain. Front. Pharmacol. 10:627. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2019.00627

4. Yang, L., Rozenfeld, R., Wu, D., Devi, L.A., Zhang, Z., and Cederbaum, A. (2014). Cannabidiol protects the liver from binge alcohol-induced steatosis by mechanisms including inhibition of oxidative stress and increase in autophagy. Free Radic. Biol. Med. 68, 260–267. doi: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2013.12.026

5. Hamelink, C. (2008). Compaisorn of cannabidiol, antioxidant, and diuretics in reversing binge ethanol-induced neurotoxicity. acc. Chem. Res 45(6), 788–802.

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