Historically, hemp sativa, also known as hemp, is a plant that has been used for 6000 years for medicinal, spiritual, and recreational purposes, this plant contains Cannabidiol (CBD) being the second most abundant cannabinoid compound in C. sativa, not only has medical benefits but despite being a narcotic substance is not psychoactive. Some of the health benefits of CBD are as an analgesic, anti-inflammatory, treatment of depressive disorders, anti-aging, antioxidant, antipsychotic, and anti-epileptic. They even help to improve the health of our pets.

Hemp sativa:

C. sativa is an annual plant species, belonging to the Cannabaceae family, which can be used almost entirely, as we can obtain textile fibers, fuel, and nutrients, and it is also used for the health benefits it offers us. The plant has gone from collection to cultivation and we even wonder if this was the first example of domestication.

As time went by, the exploitation of the plant was perfected through cultivation, in China, the first Chinese botanists described the presence of male and female plants in this species. The introduction of hemp in America was due to the Spanish, Portuguese, English, and French; Central America had a greater profusion with the passage of time. Although C. sativa has been cultivated and used for a long time, it is that in recent years there has been a great interest in its medicinal uses (Ángeles López et al., 2014).

This plant species grows in temperate and subtropical regions of the world, seed germination begins in spring, its growth stage is during mid-summer until they flower and its harvest is during early autumn. C. sativa contains cannabinoids, terpenes, flavonoids, alkaloids, lignanamides, among others; the first ones, cannabinoids, are the most abundant compound and are exclusive of this species.

Hemp is synthesized and accumulates as cannabinoid acid. It is only during drying and storage that the acid is gradually decarboxylated to its final form, such as Δ9 -tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or CBD (Angeles Lopez et al., 2014). Other types of cannabinoids contained in C. sativa are cannabigerol (CBG), cannabichromene (CBC), cannabidiol (CBND), cannabielsoin (CBE), cannabicyclol (CBL), cannabinol (CBN), cannabidiol (CBT).

How does CBD work?

Cytochrome P450 (CYP-450) is a family of hemoproteins (which are made up only of amino acids) whose function is to metabolize xenobiotics, i.e. they are enzymes responsible for transforming foreign substances in our body until they are eliminated, these substances can be: drugs, pesticides, steroids, and alkaloids; as well as metabolizing other substances that are produced by our body (Jaimes-Santoyo et al., 2014).

Mainly CBD is metabolized in the liver by CYP2C19 and CYP3A. CYP activity to metabolize xenobiotics is determined by factors such as sex, diet, physical activity, age, hormonal status, and drug treatment. Cannabinoid receptors type 1 and 2 (CB1 and CB2) make up the endocannabinoid system, as well as transporter proteins and enzymes that produce and degrade endocannabinoid according to The Fan Angel.

This system is involved in the regulation of many bodily functions, including metabolism, eating behavior, mood, anxiety, perception, and pain regulation. CB1 receptors are more prevalent throughout the body, with a particular predisposition to receptor regions in the central nervous system and spinal cord, while CB2 receptors are more prominent in lymphatic and immune tissues (Boyaji et al., 2020).