Using The Marijuana Components THC-V And CBD Every Day Helps People Lose Weight, Study Finds
From toxifillers.com with love
Research on the use of marijuana components to aid weight loss found that use of a combined product containing the cannabinoids THCV and CBD “was associated with statistically significant weight loss” as well as a slimmer waistline, lower blood pressure and decreased cholesterol.
The study, published late last month in the journal Cannabis, analyzed outcomes among 44 people who were administered either oral strips containing a mixture of the two cannabinoids or a placebo. Participants took one strip daily for 90 says and were evaluated for weight loss and certain metabolic markers.
“Use of the THCV/CBD strip was associated with statistically significant weight loss, decreases in abdominal girth, systolic blood pressure, and total and LDL cholesterol,” says the report, authored by Dr. Gregory Smith, the founder and CEO of plant-based medicine company NeX Therapeutics, based in Florida.
Participants—31 of whom were female and 13 of whom were male, with a combined average age of about 52 years—were given either a placebo or one of two different mucoadhesive oral strips. A lower-dose version contained 8 milligrams of THCV and 10 mg CBD, while a higher-dose version had 16 mg THCV and 20 mg CBD. Subjects received a reminder to take a dose each day on an empty stomach and report any side effects, and they agreed to refrain from using cannabis or other cannabinoid-based products.
Participants were not asked to make any changes to their diet or exercise routines.
Of 24 people who received the lower-potency oral strips, 16 (66.7 percent) demonstrated weight loss over the course of the 90-day period—on average losing 2.6 kilograms (5.7 pounds). Among the 10 who received the higher-dose strips, seven (70 percent) lost weight—an average of 4.1 kg (9.0 lbs).
The 10 subjects who received the placebo, meanwhile, lost an average of just 0.1 kg (0.2 lbs).
Nearly all (95.8 percent) in the lower-dose group also saw reductions in abdominal girth, as did 70 percent of the higher-dose subjects.
“It is interesting to note that there was a barely statistically significant decrease in the control/placebo group,” Smith wrote, “however, it is also worth noting that abdominal girth is probably the least accurate of all the biometric measures taken for the purposes of this study.”
The THCV/CBD groups also showed reductions in systolic blood pressure as well as total and LDL cholesterol, the research found.
“In summary, 90 day use of once-daily THCV and CBD-infused mucoadhesive strips was associated with clinically significant weight loss, decreases in abdominal girth, systolic blood pressure, and total and LDL cholesterol,” the report concludes, adding that stronger dosage appeared to perform better: “The 16mg/20mg daily dose in Group B was superior for weight loss compared to the 8mg/10mg daily dose in Group A.”
Despite being limited by relatively small sample sizes, Smith said the findings nevertheless align with past, unpublished research using a product called Hempson Oil, which contains THCV, CBDV and CBD.
A peripheral question in the study asked whether use of THCV would result in a positive urine drug test for THC. Of nine people who took the higher-dose oral strips and consented to a urine test, seven (77.8 percent) tested positive. “All nine subjects again denied the use of THC during the course of the study,” Smith wrote, “suggesting that some of the THCV metabolites excreted in urine will register as THC metabolites on a drug test.”
The strips themselves contained no detectable amount of THC, according to a third-party lab test.
Other recent research into minor cannabinoids has similarly found that the compounds might affect metabolism and, by extension, weight loss.
Research published last year into cannabigerol (CBG) noted that it showed promise in treating metabolic syndrome, which is linked to the development of other ailments such as cardiovascular disease, liver disease and type 2 diabetes.
“Recent studies on CBG provide a potential pharmacotherapy strategy for metabolic syndrome,” that report said, noting that CBG is “the sole known cannabinoid that activates the adrenergic receptor.”
The review added that CBG “has been shown to reduce appetite and induce weight loss by blocking CB1 receptors” and “to increase the activity of brown adipose tissue (BAT), which is responsible for burning calories and generating heat. HUM-234, a derivative of CBG, has been shown to prevent high-fat diet-induced weight gain and lower serum levels of liver enzymes ALT and AST.”
A separate study last year found that regular marijuana users were less likely to be obese than people who don’t consume cannabis. In fact, the analysis showed a “dose-response relationship between marijuana use and [body mass index], with the lower the BMI classification, the higher marijuana use.”
People who’d used cannabis within the past month were “31% less likely to be obese than non-users, after adjustment,” the study says, while “daily marijuana users are 32% less likely to be obese than non-users.”
Likewise, people who were obese reported significantly lower rates of past-month marijuana use. The study found that the prevalence of use among obese individuals was 35 percent lower than non-obese respondents to the survey—a finding “consistently observed across the levels of certain demographic variables, employment status, tobacco smoking history, marijuana legalization status, and certain medical conditions (asthma, arthritis, and depression).”
Separate research published in 2020 found that “compared to older adult nonusers, older adult cannabis users had lower [body mass index] at the beginning of an exercise intervention study, engaged in more weekly exercise days during the intervention, and were engaging in more exercise-related activities at the conclusion of the intervention.”
Another 2024 study found that young to midlife adults were neither more sedentary nor more intensely active after consuming cannabis. In fact, recent marijuana use was associated with a “marginal increase” in light exercise.
“Our findings provide evidence against existing concerns that cannabis use independently promotes sedentary behavior and decreases physical activity,” authors of that paper wrote, adding that “the stereotypical ‘lazy stoner’ archetype historically portrayed with chronic cannabis use does not acknowledge the diverse uses of cannabis today.”
Another study, published in 2023, linked marijuana use to an enhanced “runner’s high” and lower pain during exercise. Participants experienced “less negative affect, greater feelings of positive affect, tranquility, enjoyment, and dissociation, and more runner’s high symptoms during their cannabis (vs. non-cannabis) runs,” according to those findings.
And in 2021, researchers found that frequent marijuana consumers are actually more likely to be physically active compared to their non-using counterparts.
Yet another study, in 2019, found that people use cannabis to elevate their workout tend to get a healthier amount of exercise. It also concluded that consuming before or after exercising improved the experience and aided in recovery.
A recent study into CBD, meanwhile, found that the cannabinoid could benefit competitive runners by helping to reduce anxiety and perceived exertion.
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Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.
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