Multiple Sclerosis and CBD

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a disease that impacts the body’s central nervous system (CNS) including the brain, optic nerves, and spinal cord. MS consists of an abnormal response of the body’s immune system. From here, the immune system targets myelin (a substance that surrounds and insulates the body’s nerves), and myelin gets damaged, which then produces scars (sclerosis). These scars are believed to be the cause of the painful symptoms MS patients experience.

Although MS causes various painful symptoms, over 85 percent of MS patients experience spasticity. Fortunately, though, based on the studies have been conducted on cannabis and MS so far, most indicate that cannabinoids are associated with self-reported spasticity improvements. It has also been found that CBD contains anti-spasm properties. Additionally, the American Academy of Neurology has expressed that cannabis is effective for the treatment of pain and spasticity. Then, one Israel study discovered that cannabis can safely alleviate pain in older MS patients and those with other chronic conditions, such as Crohn’s Disease.

Currently, 20-60 percent of MS patients consume cannabis, and many use topical cannabis products as their primary delivery method. To help treat muscle spasms and pain, it’s common for MS patients to use cannabis topically, so they can apply the medicine onto specific areas of their body. To achieve localized and rapid relief though, it’s recommended to use topical products with one example being CanniMed’s products, from which numerous Canadian MS patients have benefited.