This document summarizes research on using Cannabis sativa (marijuana) to treat Crohn's disease. Crohn's is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease. The author reviews studies showing that cannabinoids in cannabis reduce bowel inflammation in mice with induced colitis. Surveys of human patients also found cannabis relieved abdominal pain and diarrhea from Crohn's. While legal issues surround cannabis, synthetic cannabinoids are being developed that may have similar medical benefits. The document concludes that cannabis appears to be an effective treatment for reducing intestinal inflammation in Crohn's disease patients.

1. Anaeli Shockey López
Chemistry Department, University of Puerto Rico-Cayey
The use of Cannabis sativa as an anti-inflammatory for Crohn’s Disease
Abstract
The objective of this paper is to see how the use of Cannabis sativa can be used as an
anti-inflammatory for Crohn’s disease. Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammatory disease of the
intestines. It has many side effects, including bowel inflammation. Cannabis sativa is composed
of cannabinoids and cannabinoids are composed of cannabidiols. The body has cannabinoid
receptors, such as CB1 and CB2, and the cannabinoids of cannabis, such as TCH (Δ9-
tetrahydrocannabinol), attach themselves to the receptors. Each part of the brain that has a
receptor has a different function in the body; therefore when cannabis is used the functions are
reduced or enhanced. Throughout some research papers, it is proven that Cannabis sativa would
be a good option for those who suffer from inflammatory bowel diseases, not only because it
reduces inflammation, but also because it helps with other symptoms of the diseases. Even
though the usage of cannabis is good for more than just inflammatory bowel disease, there are
many legal complications surrounding it. Because of this, synthetic cannabis is being produced
and is under investigation.
Introduction
Some researchers have had the same
question as I, what is a successful alterative
medicine that people with Crohn’s disease could
you to have a relief from their symptoms? After
searching for an alternative to all the treatments
that are commonly used, I stumbled upon
Cannabis sativa. On-going experimenting is being
conducted for the use of this as a treatment for
Crohn’s disease. Now, the reason I chose to
research on Crohn’s disease is because of my
father. He has been suffering from this condition
for more than twenty years and by choosing this
topic I can research on some treatments that
would help him feel better because, unfortunately,
there is no cure.
Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammatory
disease of the intestines in which one of the mayor
symptoms is bowel inflammation. Upon doing
some investigation, it is seen in papers that the use
of Cannabis sativa(commonly known as
marijuana) decreases the inflammation of the
bowel in inflammatory bowel diseases. Though
still under investigation, it is most likely that the
reason of this is because of cannabinoid receptors
that the body has. Cannabinoid receptors are
activated due to cannabinoid components that
exist in Cannabis sativa. One of the mayor
cannabinoid chemicals is THC (Δ9-
tetrahydrocannabinol) and it is the cannabinoid
that bonds most efficiently with the receptors.
As mentioned earlier, the objective of this
paper is to illustrate how the use of Cannabis
sativa reduces bowel inflammation. It is true that
there are legal complications and disputes around
the subject of cannabis, but that is the reason to
why synthetic cannabis is being produced.
Though the effects might not be the same, they
will be similar, therefore, benefiting those who
suffer from inflammatory bowel diseases.
Crohn’s Disease
Like mentioned earlier, Crohn’s disease is
categorized as an inflammatory bowel disease.
This means that Crohn’s disease is a chronic
inflammatory disease of the intestines.The
inflammation is caused by an activation of the
immune system in the intestines. The immune

2. system of those who suffer from inflammatory
bowel diseases is abnormally activated without a
sign of any invader. Ultimately, this causes
chronic inflammation and ulceration. The
ulcerations can be in both the small intestine and
the large intestine and the digestive system can
also be affected.There are different types of
Crohn’s disease, such as: Crohn’s colitis, Crohn’s
enteritis, Crohn’s terminal ileitis and
Crohn’sentero-colitis and ileo-colitis. Depending
on what type of Crohn’s disease a person has is
the symptoms he/she will suffer from. Some of
the symptoms are: abdominal pain, vomiting,
diarrhea, loss of appetite, weight loss, rectal pain
and occasionally, fever, night sweats and rectal
bleeding.The reason of why Crohn’s disease
occurs is still unknown. Although surgery and
medication, such as anti-inflammatory agents,
topical antibiotics, and immune-modulators, exist
to treat Crohn’s disease, there is no medical cure.
(Schoenfeld, Wu. 2010)
Cannabis sativa
Cannabis sativa, commonly known as
marijuana, has been used as a medicine for
approximately five thousand years. Cannabis
sativa is composed of cannabinoids and those
cannabinoids are composed of cannabidiols.
Although many cannabinoids exist, the primary
one that affects the body is THC (Δ9-
tetrahydrocannabinol). Depending on the amount
of THC that is in your body is how much the
effect will be. The more THC, the more the
effects will be. Through investigations, it is
known that cannabinoids have a direct
involvement with the anti-inflammatory action of
cannabis. (Burstein, Zurier. 2009)
In the human body two mayor cannabinoid
receptors exist: CB1 and CB2. (Pertwee. 2008)
THC is mediated by the CB1receptor, which
produces certain responses of the body. (Cooper,
Haney. 2009). Mainly, CB1receptors are located
in the brain and CB2in the immune system. The
receptor that most affects the body with the use of
cannabis is CB1. Each part of the brain that has
CB1receptors affects a different function of the
body. Among the parts of the brain that have
CB1receptors are: the basal ganglia, the
cerebellum, the medulla, the cerebral cortex, the
hypothalamus, the hippocampus and the spinal
cord. How exactly does THC affect those parts of
the brain? Well, THC mimics or blocks the
actions of neurotransmitters (chemicals that
allows neurons to communicate with each other)
therefore interfering with normal functions.With
the use of cannabis, these are the effects on each
part of the brain. The basal ganglia and the
cerebellum bothsubside movement. The medulla
subsides, majorly, nausea/vomiting. The cerebral
cortex increases cognitive function. The
hypothalamus induces appetite and the
hippocampus not only induces learning and
memory but also reduces stress. Last, but not
least, the spinal cord reduces peripheral
sensations, including pain.
Cannabis is also being used for other
sicknesses, not just inflammatory bowel diseases.
Some of these are: multiple sclerosis, ADHD
(Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder),
cancer, AIDS (Acquired immune deficiency
syndrome), glaucoma, insomnia, asthma,
migraines, etc.
Cannabis sativa on Inflammatory Bowel
Diseases
The use of Cannabis sativa as an anti-
inflammatory for inflammatory bowel diseases is
a relatively recent treatment; therefore, not that
many studies have been conducted for this.
However, those studies that have been conducted
have given a positive feedback to the use of
cannabis as an anti-inflammatory. Studies have
been done on mice and surveys have been done on
humans.
A research was conducted by Capasso, et
al. (2008)in which it was discussed whether or
notcannabidiol inhibits inflammatory
hypermotility in mice. Since the mice didn’t have
any inflammation, a stimulus was created using
irritant croton oil. In the results, it was established
that cannabidiol is in fact active when there is an
inflammatory stimulus and that the inhibition

3. percentage increases when there is larger
quantities of cannabidiol. In conclusion, through
this experiment with mice, it is observed that the
use of cannabidiol is helpful in normalizing
intestinal functions, including inflammation.Since
cannabidiol is extracted from cannabinoids and
cannabinoids are components of cannabis, this
means cannabis is useful for reducing intestinal
inflammation.
Another research, similar to the one
spoken about in the earlier paragraph, was
conducted by Borrelli, et al. (2009). This
investigation also included the usage of mice to
determine the effects of cannabidiol on colitis.
Colitis is another inflammatory bowel disease,
therefore the effects that cannabidiol has on it will
be similar to the effects it will have on Crohn’s
disease. To cause the inflammation, intracolonic
administration of dinitrobenzene acid was induced
to the mice. It was found that the cannabidiol
reduced the colon injury (inflammation) and it
was concluded that it was a likely safe method for
treating colitis.
Some studies have been done with
humans but those are conducted through surveys.
Through said surveys, in one study performed by
Lal, et al. (2011) on Crohn’s disease and
ulcerative colitis, it was found that it relieved
abdominal pain, diarrhea and reduced appetite.
The most important aspect of the study was that
the abdominal pain in inflammatory diseases was
reduced with the use of cannabis. This is because,
ultimately, this means that the intestinal
inflammation was reduced. A good hypothesis to
why this happens is because of endocannabinoids
(substances that are produced within the body that
activate cannabinoid receptors). As said by
Sabatino, et al. (2011) and the article,
endocannabinoids agonists (substance that
initiates a response when connected to a receptor),
such as anandamide, are involved in the
protection of the gut against inflammation.
Another study, using surveys, was
conducted by Naftali, et al. (2011) to see what the
effects of Cannabis sativa were on patients with
Crohn’s disease. This study proves that out of
thirty patients that undertook the cannabis
treatment, twenty-one of them improved their
symptoms. Since bowel inflammation is one of
those symptoms, obviously, it means that using
cannabis reduced that. It also establishes that the
amount of drugs taken by the patients and the
amount of surgeries that were preformed on them
were reduced. In conclusion, this study proves
that cannabis would be a successful treatment for
the vast majority of those suffering from Crohn’s
disease.
Legalization Issues
There has always been a great debate on
whether cannabis should be legalized or not.
Currently, many countries have legalized it, but
many still have not. Because it has been found
that cannabis has a medical advantage but it is not
legal everywhere, synthetic cannabis is being
produced. According to the Drug Foundation, this
is a recent development of a drug and is still not
considered safe for human consumption. This
synthesis of cannabis has different cannabinoid
structures than actual cannabinoids but they affect
the cannabinoid system of the brain in a similar
ways. The synthetic cannabinoids are liquid in
their original state and solidify when they are
combined with dry herbs. Very little research data
exists around this subject and the health effects of
using synthetic cannabis are still unknown.
Conclusions
Crohn’s Disease is an inflammatory bowel
disease that mostly affects the intestines. Its
inflammation is caused by the immune system,
which activates in the intestines when no threat is
there.Cannabis sativa, commonly known as
marijuana, is composed of cannabinoids and
cannabidiol which have been found to have a
direct relationship with the anti-inflammatory
agent of cannabis. Since the body has cannabinoid
receptors, the cannabinoids that compose
Cannabis Sativa, particularly THC (Δ9-
tetrahydrocannabinol), attach to the receptors
causing the specific functions of each part of the
brain to be reduced or enhanced.From the

4. research papers it can be concluded that Cannabis
sativa has a positive effect on individuals
suffering from Crohn’s disease. By using
cannabis, abdominal pain in Crohn’s disease
patients was reduced greatly (proven by studies
mentioned earlier) and this means that intestinal
inflammation was reduced. Even though there are
legal complications regarding cannabis, synthetic
cannabis is being produced, but it is still not safe
for human consumption and experimenting is
being conducted so eventually it will be.
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