According to top medical experts, inflammation is at the root cause of more disease and dysfunctions than we can count.

Knowing this, it’s no surprise that CBD’s anti-inflammatory properties are a huge reason for its growing fame and recognition. But how does CBD fend off inflammation, exactly?

Read on for the full scoop.

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CBD and inflammation: What you need to know  

CBD interacts with the body in dozens of ways, so it’s hard to pin down exactly how CBD fends off inflammation. That said, research has given us some ideas to work off of. For example, previous studies have also shown that CBD can inhibit the activity of lipooxygenases—a class of enzymes that are considered pro-inflammatory.  

Another possible explanation is CBD’s interaction with certain adenosine receptors, which are the same receptors that caffeine binds with in the body. Adenosine release is involved in the stress response and inflammation.

CBD can also induce T-reg cells, which are critical to the health of the immune system. To get really specific, T-reg cells help the immune system to tell the difference between invaders, like viruses and bacteria, and the body’s own tissues. When this gets out of whack, the immune disease starts attacking the body and autoimmune disease typically follows.

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Why CBD’s anti-inflammatory properties are so important

Besides inflammation being at the root cause of so many diseases, it’s also intricately connected to pain. And that’s a big deal, especially when you learn that around 20.4% of U.S. adults had chronic pain. That’s over 50.0 million Americans in need of relief.

CBD has been studied for different pain- and inflammation-related illnesses, and the results are  promising. One animal study showed that CBD could effectively reduce arthritis pain, which is a disease characterised by inflammation in the joints. Another showed that CBD reduced intestinal inflammation, which could benefit people with irritable bowel syndrome and other inflammatory bowel disorders.  

According to the Harvard Health Blog, another study demonstrated CBD’s ability to inhibit inflammatory and neuropathic pain, which according to them, “are two of the most difficult types of chronic pain to treat.”

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The future of using CBD for inflammation

So what’s the future of CBD for pain and inflammation? According to a study published in 2009, cannabinoids like CBD could represent “a new class of anti-inflammatory agents against a number of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.” And seeing as there are over 100 autoimmune disease—and that number is only expected to grow—CBD’s anti-inflammatory properties might be it’s most exciting yet.