COVID-19 has affected all of our lives in one way or another. Back in early March, we were promised by the former President Trump that COVID-19 would be a thing of the past within two weeks. Ten months later, we are still here twiddling our thumbs in quarantine. Since then, there has been a vaccine released but with much uncertainty concerning its safety since it was so rapidly produced and insufficiently tested in humans.
With so much ambivalence surrounding this new vaccine, many are seeking other alternatives in aiding against COVID-19. This includes natural remedies through vaporizers and cannabis CBD.
How Does The Coronavirus Work?
The medical name for coronavirus is called a SARS-COV-2 virion meaning a single virus particle. It's in the same family as the SARS and MERS infections. COVID-19 is a zoonotic disease which means it is transferred from another species to a human body.
Experts pinpoint the origin of COVID-19 to Wuhan, China. It’s believed that bats are the carriers of SARS-COV-2’S and since bats are eaten in China this could have been the transference of coronavirus into the human body.
The virus enters the human body by attaching its protein spikes to a protein on the surface of cells called ACE2. ACE2 helps to regulate blood pressure however when the coronavirus attaches to it, it causes a chemical change that binds the cell and virus together causing the RNA to enter the cell.
The virus takes over the body's cell protein-transferring its RNA into new copies of the virus. In a matter of hours, one cell can be obligated to produce thousands of new virions which end up infecting healthy cells. Once your cells are corrupted, it prevents your healthy cells from alerting your immune system that it’s under attack. The virus tricks the body into releasing more of the virions and restrains your body from fighting off the attack through its healthy cells.
Once infected, the virus can severely impact your respiratory system including your mouth, nose, throat, and lungs leading to shortness of breath and difficulty breathing.
What Can Cannabis Do?
Once shunned for its negative connotations, cannabis is now being viewed as a miracle drug in the fight against the coronavirus. Experts have observed that cannabis active compounds have a plethora of properties that make it a viable treatment for infections from the coronavirus. Researchers have looked at the potential of cannabis in reducing susceptibility to disease and have even considered using it as an antiviral medication. Cannabis CBD can be ingested orally or with a vaporizer as a healthier alternative.
Research shows how cannabis-derived CBD may help to treat lung inflammation from the coronavirus. COVID-19 is so dangerous because it hems up your chest with inflammation and in the worst cases leads to pneumonia making it difficult to breathe. The cannabinoids in cannabis plants have anti-inflammatory properties. In particular, CBD, making it a prime candidate for treating COVID-19.
Can Medical Cannabis Help Prevent or Treat Covid-19?
Currently, there is not sufficient research to determine if cannabis is a feasible treatment or prevention method from COVID-19. What researchers have determined through study, is the potential of using CBD in oral solutions. Researchers found that extracts have an effect on the ACE2 and TMPRSS2 proteins in human cells which appear to be the entry point for the virus.
In an early pre-publication version of their study researchers said, “The extracts of our most successful and novel high CBD cannabidiol pending further investigation may become a useful and safe addition to the treatment of COVID-19 as an adjunct therapy”.
Experts said that their extracts could be used in a mouthwash or “Throat gargle” to help stop COVID-19 infection at the door. A second alternative not recommended by researchers is to inhale cannabis CBD through a vaporizer device. When CBD is inhaled, the cannabinoids are sent directly to the lungs, where they are quickly absorbed into the bloodstream.
What Can Be Done To Increase Research in This Field?
Cannabis hasn’t always been looked at as a miracle drug. It was once associated with common low lives and criminals. Today, we revere it’s healing potential and seek to use it to aid against pain and anxiety by ingesting and using it in a vaporizer. To increase the public's knowledge of the full potential of cannabis against the fight of COVID-19, there needs to be more funding for research and less restriction for sourcing cannabis.
Ten months later, the Coronavirus pandemic is still roaring. Even though there is a vaccine, many are unsure that they will take it due to the lack of research on what it's potential effects could be. Cannabis is one of the best natural alternatives in the fight against COVID-19, that’s why the government as well as research institutions must continue to develop information through extensive research.
