By Jegason Diviant
According to the National Institute of Allergy and Infection Diseases, approximately 50 million people in the US suffer from a wide range of allergies. More than 20 million Americans have asthma, which is often triggered by indoor and outdoor allergies. Allergies are a major contributor towards illness for residents in the Albuquerque metro area. Every year, we rank within the top 100 worst cities for people with allergies to live. According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, in 2016 we ranked 38th in national Spring allergy rankings, up from 44th the year before. Throughout the year, we see local news reports about allergies and their association with asthma attacks. For most New Mexicans, our homes are a shelter and sanctuary for us to relax and breathe a little easier. Unfortunately, allergens in our homes may be lurking in the most unexpected of places and come from areas that we normally wouldn’t think about.
Allergens in the home can come from a wide variety of sources: dust mites, animal allergens (pet dander, skin flakes, dried saliva, feces and urine), fungi, mold spores, bacteria, cockroach particles, tobacco smoke (first, second and third hand smoke), cleaning chemicals and volatile organic compounds that are emitted from everything from furniture to mattress foams. Allergens can also be brought in from outside of our homes. Residents of the Albuquerque metro area have to contend with a lot of different types of pollen, including: Juniper, cedar, elm, ash, cottonwood, mulberry, chenopodiaceae, sage, grass, and ragweed.
Fortunately, there are simple solutions that can provide greatly-needed relief to allergy sufferers. Bathing pets at least twice a month reduces the production and accumulation of animal allergens. Reduce humidity in your home and keep kitchens, basements, and bathrooms well ventilated to reduce the growth of mold. Use allergy-friendly chemicals in your home and reduce your aerosol use. Baking soda, vinegar, and colloidal silver are not only effective, but environmentally friendly options. Limit cigarette smoke to outside of your home. Vacuum your carpets and upholstery, change and wash bedding often, and mop hard floors regularly. Allow for fresh air to cycle through your home so that the allergens do not become highly concentrated, triggering not only allergic reactions and asthma, but sick-building syndrome as well.
Cannabis can be an excellent solution for those that suffer from seasonal allergies! The body has an endocannabinoid system, or ECS, that can modulate an enormous number of biochemical pathways throughout the body. Many of those pathways are associated with the immune system and are able to alleviate inflammatory responses to a wide range of environmental triggers. Both THC and CBD are known to have general anti-inflammatory effects. They are also known to be potent bronchodilators. Clinical research going back more than 40 years has shown that THC can be a useful adjuvant in the treatment of asthma and may also provide long-term relief as potently as albuterol, but without the serious side effects that have been associated with this commonly-prescribed drug. Both THC and CBD have been shown to have anti-spasmodic effects in addition to being able to inhibit the production of histamine, which is produced as a result of an antigen that provokes an allergic response. It is well-known that many antihistamines also have a potent anticholinergic effect, which blocks the actions of acetylcholine. Long-term use of these medications has been shown to be associated with an increased risk of dementia, whereas cannabis has been shown to be beneficial in the treatment and prevention of dementia. Several studies have shown that cannabinoids are able to downregulate inflammatory cytokine and chemokine production, as well as upregulate T-regulatory cells as a mechanism to suppress inflammatory responses. CBD is also a potent inhibitor of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), a major enzyme responsible for inflammation and pain. Common nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and other COX-2 inhibitors have a reputation for being associated with serious adverse effects, such as myocardial infarctions, heart attacks, strokes, bleeding, kidney failure, and ulcers. Unlike NSAIDs and pharmaceutical COX-2 inhibitors, CBD has not been associated with any of these adverse effects. There are dozens of other cannabinoids that may be present in low concentrations and many of them have also been shown to alleviate the discomfort associated with seasonal allergies and other environmental triggers through an entourage effect of cannabinoids working together in synchronicity.
The entourage effect is a chemical synergism that takes place between the cannabinoids, terpenes, terpenoids, flavonoids, and other components of the cannabis plant. This synergism is exactly what makes cannabis polypharmaceutical. An example is beta-caryophyllene, which is the most common sesquiterpenoid encountered in cannabis. It binds directly to the CB2 receptor. As a selective agonist of this receptor, it’s one of the major therapeutic compounds found in black pepper, hops, basil, cinnamon, and cloves, and has been well-documented to enhance the anti-inflammatory effects of various herbs, including turmeric. Just like CBD, beta-caryophyllene is able to mitigate the psychoactive effects of THC. Therefore, strains with higher concentrations of either beta-caryophyllene or CBD would be expected to produce a milder buzz.
Alpha-humulene is another potent anti-inflammatory sesquiterpene. It’s an isomer of beta-caryophyllene, and quite often the two are found naturally occurring together in many of the same plants. In fact, alpha-humulene is sometimes referred to as alpha-caryophyllene. Black pepper, hops, clove, basil, sage, and ginseng are a few examples of plants that are higher in this medicinal compound. According to a primary article in the European Journal of Pharmacology, there is evidence that alpha-humulene may be just as effective as dexamethasone for the management and/or treatment of many inflammatory diseases.
Alpha-pinene is a monoterpene found in many herbs, such as basil, rosemary, and dill. It is the most widely encountered terpenoid in nature. This terpene is also found in abundance in many coniferous trees, most notably in pine trees. It has been documented to have anti-inflammatory properties as well as being a bronchodilator. It also inhibits the breakdown of acetylcholine, which may improve overall memory in addition to counteracting short-term memory deficits associated with THC.
Linalool, a monoterpene found in over 200 species of plants, especially lavender and bergamot, is known to be very effective as a natural repellant of mosquitos, fleas, fruit flies, cockroaches, and moths. It’s very common to find linalool as an active ingredient in products that control for these pests. It’s often used as a fragrance in personal care products too. More impressively, it’s known to be exceptionally effective at inhibiting the growth of Candida albicans. At concentrations between 0.1-0.3%, linalool has been shown to be generally recognized as safe (GRAS) by the FDA and therefore is often used as a food additive in accord with the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA).
Several other compounds found in cannabis have been found to exhibit antimicrobial properties, showing activity against a number of different fungal, viral, and bacterial infections. For example, carvacrol, pinene and thymol are known to be bactericidal against Staphylococcus aureus, and the terpene alcohols geraniol, menthol, thymol, and eugenol have been shown to be effective against Bacillus cereus. How many other compounds other than cannabinoids, terpenes, and their derivatives are found in cannabis that may have antimicrobial properties? Estimates conservatively range from dozens to potentially hundreds. Chalcones and chalconoids, flavones and flavonoids, aldehydes and ketones, tannins and lignins, lactones and alkaloids, glycosides and polysaccharides…the number of classes of molecules alone that are present in cannabis is large enough. Of these classes, an enormous number of constituents have been shown to have magnificent antiviral properties.
This is a strong argument for legalization. Researchers desperately need for the red tape and restrictions to be lifted so that these therapeutic compounds can be properly cataloged and researched as they pertain to cannabis strains and the overall entourage effect exhibited by their complex synergy. We are in dire need of medications that are effective against bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites, and other microbes that are evolving and building up resistances to first, second, third, and even fourth lines of defense. It’s not only reasonable and logical, but unavoidable to conclude that cannabis can be used as an incredibly safe and highly effective broad-spectrum antimicrobial. In an upcoming article, we’ll explore some of your favorite cannabis strains and identify the cannabinoids, terpenes, terpenoids, and other therapeutic compounds found individually within them.
https://www.aafa.org/media/Spring-Allergy-Capitals-2016-Rankings.pdf
https://www.cabq.gov/airquality/todays-status/pollen/pollen-season
https://www.cdc.gov/asthma/faqs.htm
https://krqe.com/2016/03/02/allergy-season-slams-albuquerque/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3165946/
https://www.projectcbd.org/science/terpenes/terpenes-and-entourage-effect
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC470501/
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/318528.php
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0014299907005419
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ffj.1948
https://academic.oup.com/mmy/article/51/5/473/952601
https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/antiviral-phytochemicals-an-overview-2168-9652-1000220.pdf
