No matter what you may read, there is no research that shows that CBD hemp flower, CBD gummies or other CBD products can prevent or cure COVID-19 or mitigate its effects.
But at the most basic level, CBD may help alleviate the stress you feel during the quarantine. CBD may also support your immune system in combination with a healthy diet, staying active, practicing meditation and avoiding alcohol.
The good news is that most people not in high-risk groups for COVID-19 may have a mild illness course and recuperate at home. Some carriers may not even have any symptoms at all or even know they had it, which is why social distancing is so important since asymptomatic transmission rates are thought to be quite high with coronavirus.
As researchers work on a vaccine, there’s no cure for COVID-19. Many have wondered if CBD with its anti-inflammatory properties can help prevent coronavirus or to mitigate symptoms. While we don’t know the effects, there are a few preliminary studies in progress.
Recently, there have been two studies that have begun to investigate the effects of CBD on COVID-19.
Can Steroids in Combination with CBD Work Better?
An Israeli-based biotech company started clinical trials to see whether a steroid-cannabidiol (CBD) treatment could be effective in stopping or slowing the coronavirus on COVID-19 patients. David Bassa, Founder & CEO of Stero Biotechs, said:
“We estimate that our CBD-based treatment can enhance the current treatment of those patients who are in life-threatening conditions. Hospitalized COVID-19 patients are mostly being treated with steroids and our study is planned to demonstrate the benefit of a combined solution with Steroid treatments. We are hopeful that this study will lead to faster benefit for the growing number of COVID-19 patients in Israel and around the world.”
The clinical trial is quite small, just ten patients. If proof of concept is successful, research will be expanded.
Can High CBD Extracts Block COVID-19 from Entering Cells?
Researchers at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada conducted a pre-clinical study using 3D models of oral airway and intestinal tissues coupled with a sample of high CBD Cannabis Sativa extracts which may help block proteins that provide a “gateway” for COVID-19 to enter host cells. Dr. Igor Kovalchuk, CEO of Pathway Rx, which works to create cannabis therapies for treating specific diseases said recently:
“Our initial findings warrant further investigation but it’s possible that medical cannabis products could become a safe adjunct therapy for the treatment of COVID-19.”
This study needs to be peer-reviewed.
Cannabis sativa is an incredibly complex and promising plant with over 400 chemical entities. 113 of them are cannabinoid compounds. CBD is the best known of the cannabinoids.
Until recently medical research has been limited due to cannabis sativa’s classification as a controlled substance. We hope that with expanded research that the impact of CBD has on patients who have contracted COVID-19 can be verified scientifically. Until then we need to wait.
