(HealthNewsDigest.com) – With more research being put into cures and treatments, studies are finding more alternative ways to treat patients with Alzheimer’s. CBD isn’t a cure for Alzheimer’s, but some studies show that CBD could help with some of the symptoms.

What is Cannabis?

Cannabis, commonly also called marijuana, is a plant. People tend to use dried leaves and resin recreationally. Cannabis is made up of two main components, THC and CBD.

THC

THC stands for Tetrahydrocannabinol. This is the psychoactive component of cannabis that produces the “high” feeling that people want when using recreationally. It can also make you feel happy and relaxed. THC is largely illegal worldwide.

CBD

CBD doesn’t have any psychoactive effects and won’t have any impact on doing your day-to-day job. CBD could help you sleep better, feel relaxed, and could help with pain relief. CBD products such as CBD Lollipops or tinctures can be bought online and unlike THC is legal to buy.

Over the recent years, CBD has grown in popularity, with sales in CBD supplements increasing in the US in 2018 by 57%. The market is predicted to grow into a $20 billion+ industry.

How Does CBD Help Alzheimer’s?

There has been a recent breakthrough with a blood test that can help diagnose Alzheimer’s. The test can detect core biomarkers in the plasma such as beta-amyloid and certain proteins.

It has been identified that Interleukin 33 and TREM-2 are proteins in the brain that have been linked to beta-amyloid buildup, which is one of the biomarkers of the disease.

A study was carried out where mice with Alzheimer’s were given CBD. This resulted in restoring the function of Interleukin 33 and TREM-2 which reduced the build-up of beta-amyloid.

Other research suggests that high levels of CBD may help in reducing symptoms such as anxiety and agitation. These studies have been conducted using high levels of CBD which may not be available to purchase and the number of studies has been quite low so it has been difficult to prove these conclusions.

As in the study with reducing the build-up of beta-amyloid, this was carried out on mice, so it’s unknown how this might impact when CBD is used on humans.

The side effects from long-term use of CBD are also not known.

It’s good to see that progress is being made to find treatments that could help patients with Alzheimer’s. CBD could help in reducing symptoms such as anxiety.

But there needs to be more research carried out before CBD can be said to help Alzheimer’s patients, especially treatment that directly involves humans and not just mice. Research into the optimal dose and how that is received by the patient is also needed.