Cannabis Terpenes And CBD Outperform Leading COVID-19 Treatment In Early Trial

This article was originally published on The Fresh Toast, and appears here with permission.

A combination of CBD and terpenes was three time more effective in stopping coronavirus-related inflammation run amok compared to dexamethasone.

Public health officials have lamented the rush to locate a reliable Covid-19 treatment has led to “desperation science,” marked by maverick experimentation and faulty research. And while skeptics may lump cannabis in with that description, early trial results indicate otherwise.

We previously reported that several Israeli companies were exploring what role CBD and cannabis terpenes could play in fighting the coronavirus. Researchers reported that CBD’s anti-inflammatory and anti-viral properties might provide key resistance against the coronavirus. It has to do with the cytokine storm caused by Covid-19, which results in an inflammation hurricane in your respiratory system.

RELATED: The Importance Of Terpenes In Cannabis & Their Powerful Impact On Health

Your immune system can overreact and your lungs can shut down in severe cases. The few therapeutic treatments that have worked, according to researchers in this month’s issue of Brain, Behavior, and Immunity, have caused adverse side effects including pancreatitis and increased risk of heart disease. The researchers noted that CBD’s anti-inflammatory capabilities documented in previous studies are worthy of further exploration.

But Israeli researchers have found that combining CBD with cannabis terpenes could lead to far better results than CBD alone. Terpenes are known to provide marijuana’s aromatic properties, but also have shown therapeutic benefits on their own. According to Forbes, the Israeli study found a combination of CBD and terpenes was three time more effective in stopping inflammation run amok compared to the corticosteroid dexamethasone.

Photo by AnuchaCheechang/Getty Images

Continue reading this article on The Fresh Toast.

Benzinga's Related Links:

• Marijuana Shows Promise In Sickle Cell Disease Treatment
• Sleep Tight With Cannabinol (CBN), One Of The Hottest Cannabinoids