Cannabinoids and communication

In this article, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Tanja Bagar discusses the role of cannabinoids, the endocannabinoid system (ECS), and the role of phytocannabinoids in humans. She explains in a simple way how the human ECS works and how you can check if yours is still in good shape.

Safety in a Mad World: The Role of the Endocannabinoid System and Phytocannabinoids

The human body is an extraordinary and complex system. We are made up of several trillion human cells and ten times as many friendly microbes. Each individual cell is, one might say, a universe unto itself. Especially when we consider that at any given moment, several 10,000 biochemical reactions are taking place in each cell, which are precisely coordinated in time and space. And how do all these tens of trillions of cells function as a unit, our human body?
When we consider that sometimes even a few people in a house, let alone a village or a city or a country, cannot coordinate, how is it that such a huge number of simple cells are capable of working together? Well, the answer to that is not exactly simple, but it is extremely fascinating. It all begins and ends with communication.
Fortunately for us, cells are excellent communicators, they have a lot to say to each other and they are also good listeners. A cell is separated from its surroundings by a membrane, a double lipid layer, which is fluid and mobile, like a liquid mosaic, and although it actually separates the cell from its surroundings, it also allows the cell to communicate with its surroundings. Cells send and receive hundreds of messages in the form of chemical signaling molecules. Signaling molecules include hormones such as cortisol, testosterone and estrogen, and neurotransmitters such as serotonin, dopamine and also cannabinoids.

Homeostasis or balance

Yes, it's true, healthy bodies produce THC and CBD-like molecules that play a very important role. These are our own cannabinoids or endocannabinoids and are part of an umbrella system in the body that we now know as the endocannabinoid system.
We have all heard of the immune system, cardiovascular system, hormonal system, and many other systems in the body, but only a few people and very few doctors know about the endocannabinoid system, even though it was discovered in 1988 and is superior to the previously mentioned systems. The endocannabinoid system, or ECS for short, regulates the functioning of most of our cells, influences the functioning of every organ and body system, and also our emotions and perception of the environment.
Its primary role is to protect our internal biochemical balance, or homeostasis. This word is derived from the Greek word homoios – similar. Homeostasis is defined as the ability of the interior of a cell or organism to remain essentially unchanged despite major changes in the environment. For example, we have a homeostatic body temperature (regardless of whether it is minus 5 degrees outside in winter or plus 30 degrees in summer), a homeostatic pH value in the blood, and the like. If there are only minimal changes to these values, a series of mechanisms are triggered to restore homeostasis – balance as quickly as possible.

Comparing the ECS to the Immune System

Another way to explain this is to compare the ECS to the immune system. We all know that we have a complex immune system that protects us from pathogenic bacteria, viruses, and parasites. The ECS is there to protect us from all sorts of dangers, whether they are toxins, physical injuries, emotional pain, inflammation, or anything else that can disrupt the balance in our body. If we look at just these five areas of our lives, we can clearly see what state our ECS is in, whether it is still in shape and doing what it should be doing, or whether its function is already impaired.
In modern society with all its demands, our inner balance is subject to many challenges. Let's take a look at a typical day in the life of a modern person: waking up with an alarm clock (usually with a not-so-friendly sound and out of sync with our circadian rhythm), getting ourselves and our children ready for the day, constantly checking the clock, rushing, chaos and traffic jams, responsible and stressful jobs, demanding relationships, a toxic environment, and as if that weren't enough - our food is not exactly impeccable, similarly our drinking water and air. When we finally get home, we expose ourselves to the blue light of various screens to relax and fall asleep in a less than ideal environment (light pollution, electrosmog).

In order for our biochemistry to function at least somewhat well and maintain our health, despite all these stimuli, we must have exceptional defense mechanisms. Our ECS is activated many times a day and produces endocannabinoids that protect our balance. It is estimated that today the ECS is activated more times in one day than it was in one month 100 years ago, especially when we consider that it is also activated in emotional distress and stressful situations. If this happens over a longer period of time, its functioning can be disrupted.
Today we know that this is one of the first steps in the development of chronic diseases, so to speak, the first domino, which leads to the collapse of the complex domino structure. We can simply imagine the inadequate functioning of the ECS as if our body's first line of defense is turned off. And in such a case, the use of exogenous cannabinoids, especially phytocannabinoids, can be of exceptional importance.

Lifestyle and ECS

Our lifestyle can either support or undermine the endocannabinoid system. We often don’t realize that the choices we make every day also affect the state of our ECS. The foods, supplements, and medications we consume affect the enzymes that make and break down our endocannabinoids. The ECS is affected by diet and fasting, and not only that – even the atmosphere in which we eat has an impact on the ECS. Massage and exercise have also been shown to increase endocannabinoid production.
The well-known runner’s high, the euphoric feeling that some runners experience after intense aerobic exercise, is the result of anandamide, our own THC-like molecule that is produced in the reward center of the brain during exercise. It’s as if our ECS was designed to reward movement. Our endocannabinoid system needs essential fatty acids because they are the building blocks of endocannabinoid synthesis. When we don’t have enough of them, it’s like trying to build a house without bricks. The gut also plays an important role, as it’s not only where the largest part of our immune system is located, but it also houses the majority of our endocannabinoid system. If omega-3 fatty acids are the bricks of the house, a healthy gut is the foundation of the house.

Operation CBDyes on our body

Among the phytocannabinoids from hemp, one of the best studied is CBD, or cannabidiol. It has a very long list of positive effects on the functioning of our body, but in this article we will focus on some well-studied protective roles that can be helpful in facing the challenges of modern society and living in today's crazy world.

1. The first is definitely dealing with stress. For CBD There is a lot of evidence about how it affects the secretion of cortisol, the stress hormone, and how it reduces the physical consequences of long-term stress. Our body has evolved to be able to quickly adapt to dangerous situations. We have developed a mechanism that quickly provides larger amounts of energy to the danger, for fight or flight, and thus improves our chances of survival. However, our body is not adapted to long-term stress, which has become almost a constant in modern life. Thus, the body responds with a "fight or flight" reaction even to everyday situations such as traffic jams, workloads, deadlines, "graduation - marriage - house - children", social pressure and much more. As a result, more and more people are facing exhaustion or even burnout. Various warning signs show that our adrenal glands are not able to cope with the burdens of our lifestyle. The signs can be mild, such as weakness after an infection that lasts longer than usual, to serious signs such as crippling constant fatigue, recurrent infections, pain, headaches, concentration problems, insomnia and digestive problems. We can include CBD in our lives both with the aim of preventing burnout, as well as if we are already facing it. When we are under greater stress, we are shaking hands, moving, getting divorced, traveling... we take approx. 30 mg of CBD per day in several doses, but if we are already burned out, it is best to consult a specialist and together determine a protocol for restoring the endocannabinoid system, adrenal gland function and circadian rhythm. Cannabinoids are definitely the foundation of such a protocol. Since the ECS is an integral part of perceiving our reality and surroundings and experiencing danger, in a way it is the interface between the outside world and our biochemical responses, a well-functioning ECS is crucial in the long run for adequately perceiving the surroundings and their potential dangers.

2. Cardiovascular diseases deserve special attention, when we talk about facing the challenges of the modern world, as they are still the leading cause of death. Ischemia is a disease in which blood flow (and therefore oxygen) is reduced in one part of the body. The causes are various, from blood clots, physical injuries and high blood pressure. All of these can lead to a heart attack or stroke, and the symptoms depend on the location of the blocked blood vessel, as clots can occur anywhere in the body. When talking about the effects of cannabinoids on cardiovascular health, we really need to distinguish between different cannabinoids. THC is strictly contraindicated in people with cardiovascular disease. However, CBD has proven to be extremely beneficial. Preventive use of CBD significantly alleviated the consequences of a subsequent heart attack, there was less damage to the heart muscle and the recovery time was shortened. When CBD was used within 24 hours of a heart attack, the outcome was similar. In the case of a stroke, the observations were comparable to those of a heart attack. Both preventive use of CBD and its use shortly after a cardiovascular event have had extremely positive cardiovascular effects. Preventive use of CBD is therefore particularly appropriate and important for people who have a genetic predisposition or risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

3. In the modern world, many things are rightly getting on our nerves, and protecting our brain and entire nervous system should be one of our priorities if we want long-term health.. The breadth and intensity of stimuli that we are all exposed to in the modern world is extremely stressful, and finding ways to protect our nervous system is crucial. A patent for the use of cannabinoids as neuroprotective agents was approved in the USA over a decade ago. CBD has been shown to increase blood flow in the brain and has strong neuroprotective effects. It also reduces the release of excitatory neurotransmitters and protects neuronal mitochondria, the “powerhouses” of cells. Interestingly, CBD has little effect on neurons when they are normally in a stimulated state, but has a pronounced protective effect when they are overstimulated. This means that CBD has a protective function when our nervous system is under heavy stress and reduces “noise” in the nervous system. Most of us are probably familiar with the feeling of evening noise in our heads, if the day was stressful and a lot happened…, the feeling that we are wearing a beehive instead of a head. When neuronal activity is calm, silence usually reigns, CBD acts as a kind of brake when nervous system activity rises above healthy levels.

4. Finally, let's touch on anti-aga a little bit. The term anti-aging is often associated with or even equated with reducing wrinkles, using Botox and removing excess sagging skin, although the aging that is reflected on the skin is actually the result of internal processes. Therefore, biological age is much more important than our chronological age. We are not affected by EMŠO if our biochemistry is balanced. More important than how many wrinkles we count around the eyes and on the forehead and how many gray hairs we have already secretly pulled out is the question of how old or young our cells and organs feel. Anti-aging medicine is not so much concerned with our external appearance, but with the condition and functioning of our vital systems and, of course, with homeostasis. Here, the properties of cannabinoids stand out in particular: from antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective effects at the cellular level to the effect on cognitive functions, cardiovascular and intestinal health at the systemic level. Telomeres play a very important role in aging, both internal and external. These are a kind of biological clocks, we can imagine them as protective caps at the ends of chromosomes. Telomeres have been preserved in evolution from single-celled organisms to mammals, which indicates their important role. With each cell division, a part of the telomeres is lost, and so they shorten with each division and with aging. When they become too short, the chromosomes can no longer divide and the cell dies. The length of the telomeres thus determines our cellular age. Many anti-aging approaches, even gene therapies, target telomeres, especially the enzyme telomerase – namely, the enzyme that shortens them –, so compounds are being sought that slow down this enzyme. Well, by now you have probably guessed it – it is true, cannabinoids reduce the activity of this enzyme. Cannabinoids thus contribute on many levels to youthful biochemistry, the balance of our cells, the ability to cope with stress, and also the length of our telomeres, and therefore they are among the exceptional anti-aging molecules.

Is our ECS in good shape?

In the end, of course, the question arises: is our ECS still in good shape and functioning properly and still protecting you from the crazy world? Since we know that the ECS is important for sleep, appetite, memory, muscle strength and the immune system, I invite you to a brutally honest self-diagnosis. Take an objective and self-critical look at these five areas of your life and answer the following questions:
– Do I have balanced appetite?
– Am I sleeping well, am I waking up? restedand full energy?
– Do I have enough muscle strength for my daily activities? Do muscles relax well in the evening?
– Do I remember information that is important to me and can I easily I forget unimportant everyday information?
– Or my immune system works well? Or just I rarely get sick. due to seasonal infections?

If you answered “yes” to all of these questions, then your ECS is likely functioning well and protecting your biochemistry appropriately. However, if you answered “no” to one or more of these questions, it’s (highly) time to support the functioning of your endocannabinoid system and lay a solid foundation for long-term health and vitality, regardless of the craziness of the world around us.

Wrote: Asst. Dr. Tanja Bagar

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