Is CBD An Antioxidant?

Pollution is not just an environmental concern. Our cells deal with their own version of pollution constantly. Fortunately, we have ways of fighting pollution in our bodies: antioxidants. Many bloggers and websites claim that CBD is a powerful antioxidant, but is it really? And even if it is, how exactly does it work to help clean up the pollution in your cells?

First thing’s first: what exactly does this cellular pollution do? Our cells are constantly generating energy for us to use in our daily lives. Just like an ordinary power plant, our cellular power plants produce toxins as they create energy. We call these toxins Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS). These renegade molecules and atoms carry nasty electric charges and they are all too ready to pass these charges onto any other atoms or molecules they run into. When ROS bumps into functioning parts of our cells, they destabilize those parts, putting the cell at risk. This is even more dangerous when they manage to bump into and destabilize our DNA, causing us to age faster. Because ROS are so dangerous, our bodies have developed systems to “clean up” their pollution. Those systems are antioxidants.

There are many ways that antioxidants can help clean up or even prevent cell pollution. In that same vein, CBD has many different methods of boosting your body’s antioxidant systems. The four major ways involve mitochondria, TRP channels, PPARγ, and zinc regulation.1 We’ll break each one down next.

We will begin with mitochondria, the cell’s power plants. Mitochondria accidentally create ROS when they produce our energy, and they have various systems to help deal with them. These systems don’t always work. When CBD gets involved, it can take the outer layer of the mitochondria – which the ROS must get through to do damage – and lowers its conductance, meaning it becomes harder for the electrically charged ROS to get through.2 CBD can also identify cells and mitochondria that are producing too much pollutant and order them to be shut down.2 CBD leads to the death of these dangerous cells, protecting your overall body from the hazardous ROS before it becomes too much of a problem.

CBD also works through a variety of TRP Channels – special gateways into and out of the cell that connects strongly to the nervous system. One channel type, TRPV1, is implicated in oxidation and inflammation, two things in the body that go hand in hand.3,4 CBD can silence this channel, akin to locking a door. TRPV1 is found in skin and immune cells, common violators of pollution safety in the body. CBD’s work on TRPV1 can help with both oxidation and inflammation.4

PPARγ is a transcription factor – that is, a molecular key that determines when certain parts of our DNA are locked down or available for use. By controlling what parts of our DNA are active, PPAR’s have a role in many cellular processes, including the “regulation of metabolism and energy homeostasis.”5 In short, this means PPAR’s are involved in controlling cell pollution. CBD has been shown to affect PPAR, while various other cannabinoids can affect PPARα and PPARβ.5 By helping PPAR’s keep a tight leash on ROS production, CBD and the other cannabinoids provide yet another antioxidant effect.1

Finally, CBD is known to affect zinc homeostasis.1 Zinc can be an important antioxidant in the body, but with too much or too little, it becomes a pro-oxidant, meaning it starts to harm the body like a ROS.6 By regulating how much zinc is being used and where, CBD provides its last antioxidant effect (that we know of!).

So, is CBD an antioxidant? With at least four ways of providing antioxidant effects, it seems safe to say so. More importantly, CBD helps the body regulate its own antioxidant systems, which helps to boost general homeostasis and slow down aging.7 With Yes.Life’s Hemp CBD Oil, you can enjoy the benefits of CBD on the body’s natural pollutants fast and efficiently. Using our water absorptive YesNano^TM technology, our CBD will reach your blood quickly and provide you the benefits you bought it for.

References:

¹ Fernanda F. Peres et al., "Cannabidiol as a Promising Strategy to Treat and Prevent MovementDisorders?" Frontiers in Pharmacology 9 (2018): ,doi:10.3389/fphar.2018.00482.

² N. Rimmerman et al.,"Direct Modulation of the Outer Mitochondrial Membrane Channel,Voltage-dependent Anion Channel 1 (VDAC1) by Cannabidiol: A Novel Mechanism for Cannabinoid-induced Cell Death," Cell Death & Disease 4, no. 12 (2013): , doi:10.1038/cddis.2013.471.

³ Caterina, Michael J."TRP Channel Cannabinoid Receptors in Skin Sensation, Homeostasis, andInflammation." ACS Chemical Neuroscience 5, no. 11 (2014): pp. 1107-116.doi:10.1021/cn5000919.

⁴ Simone Reuter et al., "Oxidative Stress, Inflammation, and Cancer: How Are TheyLinked?" Free Radical Biology and Medicine 49, no. 11 (2010): pp. 1603-1616,doi:10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2010.09.006.

⁵ Osullivan, Saoirse Elizabeth. "An Update on PPAR Activation by Cannabinoids." British Journal of Pharmacology 173, no. 12 (2016): pp. 1899-1910. doi:10.1111/bph.13497.

⁶ Lee, Sung Ryul. "Critical Role of Zinc as Either an Antioxidant or a Prooxidant inCellular Systems." Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity 2018(2018): pp. 1-11. doi:10.1155/2018/9156285.

⁷ Wang, L., J. Karpac,and H. Jasper. " Promoting Longevity by Maintaining Metabolic andProliferative Homeostasis." Journal of Experimental Biology 217, no. 1 (2013): pp. 109-118. doi:10.1242/jeb.089920.