Cannabinoids (via the endocannabinoid system) affect our gut, its microbiome, and the rest of the human body. Through the ‘microbiome-gut-brain axis’ and other pathways, phytocannabinoids (plant-derived cannabinoids) can bring about positive changes throughout the whole body, helping us deal with everything from low mood to autoimmune problems like inflammatory bowel disease.
What about when things don’t immediately improve, though? What can or should be done when phytocannabinoids do not bring the quick relief we’re hoping for? Of course, as with any long-term solution, phytocannabinoids will always require patience and consistency from the user to bring out their full suite of benefits. That being said, there are certainly some factors that can delay the process.
Today, PĒLL looks at one such reason why phytocannabinoids may take longer than usual to begin working fully – a common gut issue called dysbiosis. We’ll delve right into what this condition means for cannabinoid absorption and the body’s wider health, as well as exploring a secret weapon to restoring your gut health – probiotics!
Dysbiosis
Dysbiosis can be defined as an imbalance or disruption in the gut’s microbiome. It may be characterised by an increase or decrease in the size of the gut’s microbial community, or variations in the proportions of different types and species of microbes. Dysbiosis can be caused by a wide range of factors both internal and external, including illness, genetic predisposition, diet, antibiotics, and pollution.
Dysbiosis can impact basically all aspects of the human body – from mood fluctuations to digestion of food to immune response (ability to deal with viruses, toxins and other external violent intruders). For example, dysbiosis can affect the activity of beta-glucuronidase, an enzyme created by the body and found in the gut, which helps break down substances such as drugs, toxins. And dysbiosis affects the number of cannabinoid receptors in our body which is low when the gut microbiome is in bad shape, thus the poor absorption of the cannabinoids that you take in – they just don´t have anywhere to bind to.
Probiotics – what are they and how can they help?
There is evidence to suggest that phytocannabinoids can be used to address dysbiosis and restore gut homeostasis (balance in the gut microbiome composition, as it should be). But as dysbiosis can affect the uptake of cannabinoids in our guts in the first place, the process of re-balancing the gut microbiome may take longer than we’d like if left to this alone. That’s where probiotics come in.
Probiotics are live microorganisms that can be introduced to the gut microbiome to help redress dysbiosis (by re-populating or re-balancing microbial communities) or prevent an imbalance from occurring in the first place. Probiotics have shown to effectively quicken the process of the cannabinoid receptor formulation in the gut and body in general. This means that you will achieve the absorption of the phytocannabinoids quicker, the absorption will be better, and you will need to use less cannabinoids to achieve the same results.
As a conclusion
So in conclusion we can say that in order to increase the level of bioavailability or absorption of cannabinoid products in your body and enhance their functionality you should support your body and more specifically the microbiome with probiotics. These can be found in abundance in fermented foods and drinks but also in special capsulated products. What will also happen is that your body´s own endocannabinoid system will be in a better shape and that in turn keeps your other bodily systems in healthy balance.
References
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