Can CBD help people suffering from celiac disease & intestinal inflammation

How CBD and cannabis light can help people with celiac disease and those with intestinal problems CBD, or the non-psychoactive cannabinoid of cannabis, is attracting the attention of the medical world due to its anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving nature. In this article we will analyze the validity of CBD treatments for those suffering from Celiac disease and chronic intestinal inflammation, to understand if this cannabinoid can be effective even in the case of these highly disabling diseases.

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Cannabidiol main characteristic is the ability to attenuate the inflammatory states and to alleviate the pain, but above all to do it without the heavy contraindications of traditional medicines. For this reason, it is widely used by those suffering from inflammatory diseases or those suffering from chronic pain. This theory leads us to think that, in the same way, CBD can be a valid aid against Celiac disease, a chronic pathology that involves the inflammation of the digestive system in people intolerant to gluten.

What is Celiac disease

Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease that leads to the damage of intestinal walls when genetically predisposed patients consume gluten food (proteins present in wheat, rye, barley and other foods based on cereals). It is estimated that, only in Italy, there are almost 600 000 people suffering from Celiac disease and that about 400 000 of these people have not received a correct diagnosis. For those suffering from celiac disease, even a small amount of gluten can cause severe pain and intestinal problems, malabsorption of nutritional substances and other multiple secondary effects depending on the predisposition of the individual. To date, there is no cure for Celiac disease if not abstention to consumption of all foods and substances based on or containing gluten.

Cannabis and celiac disease: scientific studies

The lack of an effective and at the same time easy to follow therapeutic pathway has opened the way to a large number of enthusiasts that have often been premature. However, we try to understand if CBD can really be a valid aid against Celiac disease.

Unfortunately, clinical studies on the possible applications of CBD for Celiac disease are few and some have proved inconclusive results. Nevertheless, we examined a study conducted by Italian researchers in 2011 and published in the scientific journal Plos One which aimed to evaluating the possibility of reducing intestinal inflammation thanks to CBD.

The conclusions of this study are as followed. All the results obtained suggest that CBD allows the regulation of inflammatory reactions in the intestine, thus preventing the creation of intestinal damage.

Another interesting study conducted by researchers at the University of Teramo have analyzed the correlation between particular characteristics of the endocannabinoid system and the development of Celiac disease. In this case, the conclusions are unclear, but it has been demonstrated a close correlation between endocannabinoid system malfunctions (with which CBD has a strong affinity) and the pathogenesis of Celiac disease. In fact, the studies carried out “suggest that an abnormal modulation of the endocannabinoid system […] may be implicated in the pathogenesis of Celiac disease. Additional studies are needed to ascertain whether the detection of these changes could have a therapeutic role “.

On the net, it is easy to find articles in which many people with Celiac disease claim to have improved greatly their condition by taking CBD supplements. Obviously, we do not believe in certain extremisms and simplifications. Given the number of scientific studies concerning the fruitful use of CBD for the treatment of numerous inflammatory diseases, we are certain that cannabidiol has effective anti-inflammatory properties and that its intake causes very little side effects. However, before claiming victory we are waiting for a sufficient number of specific researches regarding the possible use of CBD in the treatment of Celiac disease to be still carried out.