A CBD-Derived Medicine Could Be The Answer To Fentanyl Overdoses

By Lucía Tedesco, via El Planteo. 

Researchers demonstrated that CBD is capable of reversing a fentanyl overdose. This was due to a study by a group of scientists from Indiana University, USA, who tested 15 cannabidiol derivatives for these purposes.

In 2021, 80,000 people died from opioid overdoses in the United States, a figure that is on the rise and has been causing concern for some time. But thanks to the work done by the Indiana scientific team, it was found that fentanyl's contact with brain receptors can be reduced.

How? CBD, combined with naloxone (which is the drug commonly used to reverse overdoses) generates what they call a "synergistic effect".

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While naloxone has saved many people from dying of overdoses, fentanyl is a potent opioid. Opioid drugs stick to receptors in the brain and, when they become plugged, the respiratory system becomes sluggish and the person stops breathing.

According to Leafie, the project's co-principal investigator, Alex Straiker PhD, said that fentanyl compounds account for more than 80% of opioid overdose deaths, and that opioids "are too great an economic temptation for traffickers." At the moment, naloxone is the only drug available to reverse overdoses and, as Straiker said, "it makes sense to look for other alternatives."

Scientific Background On fighting Fentanyl With CBD

Research from 2006 in Germany served as background for this new study. Scientists had tested CBD combined with naloxone and concluded that cannabidiol can change the response of receptors to stimuli and even cause the body to release opioids.
Given the results obtained in Germany, the team working on the current study has developed a range of CBD derivatives and tested their efficacy. However, they are still working to develop an effective life-saving product.

Read Next: Mexico Seizes Largest-Ever Haul Of Fentanyl Products In Massive Drug Bust: Report

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