COMBATING MENSTRUAL PAIN with Cannabis by heather derose Many women are plagued with menstrual pain each month. According to The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, dysmenorrhea is the most commonly reported menstrual disorder. The pain can vary from throbbing cramps to cramping pain in the lower abdomen. Other symptoms can include lower back pain, nausea, diarrhea and headaches. Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) symptoms usually begin 1 to 2 weeks prior to your period and can include weight gain, bloating, irritability, and fatigue.
FOR SOME WOMEN, MENSTRUAL PAIN CAN BE DEBILITATING. Women who experience pain for several days a month have options to endure the pain or medicate to alleviate symptoms. 48
Many women turn to over-thecounter NSAIDs (nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs) such as Ibuprofen for pain relief. At prescription doses, these drugs can provide relief with inflammation. However, these drugs are synthetic, and the human body does not have a regulatory system to process them. This leads to side effects. In addition, these treatments usually do not provide adequate symptom relief for patients. NSAIDs raise the risk of having a heart attack or stroke and can cause stomach bleeding and death. Prostaglandins are inflammatory chemicals that peak during menstruation. NSAIDs work by inhibiting the enzyme responsible for producing prostaglandins (COX-2). This means that NSAIDs could potentially decrease all the symptoms aggravated by prostaglandins, including inflammation, contractions, and pain. However, NSAIDs
can also have unpleasant gastrointestinal side effects, because they inhibit another enzyme (COX-1). For this reason, NSAIDs should be used with moderation, and people with certain digestive issues might want to avoid them entirely.
RESEARCH SHOWS THAT, SIMILAR TO NSAIDS, CBD ALSO INHIBITS THE PROSTAGLANDIN PRODUCING ENZYME. Unlike NSAIDs, CBD preferentially inhibits COX-2 over COX-1. In simpler terms, this means its anti-inflammatory benefits come without the gastrointestinal side effects. Not only does CBD inhibit the COX-2 enzyme, but both CBD and THC physically stop
