Cancer is a Preventable Disease that Requires Major Lifestyle Changes

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“This year, more than 1 million Americans and more than 10 million people worldwide are expected to be diagnosed with cancer, a disease commonly believed to be preventable.

Only 5–10% of all cancer cases can be attributed to genetic defects, whereas the remaining 90–95% have their roots in the environment and lifestyle. The lifestyle factors include cigarette smoking, diet (fried foods, red meat), alcohol, sun exposure, environmental pollutants, infections, stress, obesity, and physical inactivity.

The evidence indicates that of all cancer-related deaths, almost 25–30% are due to tobacco, as many as 30–35% are linked to diet, about 15–20% are due to infections, and the remaining percentage are due to other factors like radiation, stress, physical activity, environmental pollutants etc.

Therefore, cancer prevention requires smoking cessation, increased ingestion of fruits and vegetables, moderate use of alcohol, caloric restriction, exercise, avoidance of direct exposure to sunlight, minimal meat consumption, use of whole grains, use of vaccinations, and regular check-ups.

In this review, we present evidence that inflammation is the link between the agents/factors that cause cancer and the agents that prevent it. In addition, we provide evidence that cancer is a preventable disease that requires major lifestyle changes.

In summary, this review outlines the preventability of cancer based on the major risk factors for cancer. The percentage of cancer-related deaths attributable to diet and tobacco is as high as 60–70% worldwide.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2515569/

http://www.thctotalhealthcare.com/category/cancer/

 

Efficacy and Safety of Cannabidiol and Tetrahydrocannabivarin on Glycemic and Lipid Parameters in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled, Parallel Group Pilot Study.

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“Cannabidiol (CBD) and Δ9-tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV) are nonpsychoactive phytocannabinoids affecting lipid and glucose metabolism in animal models. This study set out to examine the effects of these compounds in patients with type 2 diabetes.

RESULTS:

Compared with placebo, THCV significantly decreased fasting plasma glucose (estimated treatment difference [ETD] = -1.2 mmol/L; P < 0.05) and improved pancreatic β-cell function (HOMA2 β-cell function [ETD = -44.51 points; P < 0.01]), adiponectin (ETD = -5.9 × 106 pg/mL; P < 0.01), and apolipoprotein A (ETD = -6.02 μmol/L; P < 0.05), although plasma HDL was unaffected. Compared with baseline (but not placebo), CBD decreased resistin (-898 pg/ml; P < 0.05) and increased glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide (21.9 pg/ml; P < 0.05). None of the combination treatments had a significant impact on end points. CBD and THCV were well tolerated.

CONCLUSIONS:

THCV could represent a new therapeutic agent in glycemic control in subjects with type 2 diabetes.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27573936

Peltatoside Isolated from Annona crassiflora Induces Peripheral Antinociception by Activation of the Cannabinoid System.

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“Peltatoside is a natural compound isolated from leaves of Annona crassiflora Mart., a plant widely used in folk medicine.

This substance is an analogue of quercetin, a flavonoid extensively studied because of its diverse biological activities, including analgesic effects. Besides, a previous study suggested, by computer structure analyses, a possible quercetin-CB1 cannabinoid receptor interaction.

Thus, the aim of this work was to assess the antinociceptive effect of peltatoside and analyze the cannabinoid system involvement in this action.

Our results suggest that this natural substance is capable of inducing analgesia through the activation of peripheral CB1 receptors, involving endocannabinoids in this process.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27574895

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Endocannabinoid mechanism for orofacial antinociception induced by electroacupuncture in acupoint St36 in rats.

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“This study was conducted with the aim of evaluating whether electroacupuncture (EA) at acupoint St36 could produce antinociception through the activation of an endocannabinoid mechanism.

CONCLUSION:

This study demonstrated for the first time that the CB1 cannabinoid receptor participates in the antinociceptive effect induced by EA.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27573715

Characterization of non-olfactory GPCRs in human sperm with a focus on GPR18.

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“G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) transduce external chemical cues into intracellular signals and are involved in a plethora of physiological processes, but knowledge regarding the function of these receptors in spermatozoa is limited. In the present study, we performed RNA-Seq and analyzed the expression of the all GPCRs except olfactory receptors in human spermatozoa. We revealed the expression of up to 223 different GPCR transcripts in human spermatozoa (FPKM > 0.1) and identified GPR18, a newly described cannabinoid receptor, together with GPR137 and GPR135, as one of the three most highly expressed GPCRs. To date, the expression of GPR18 was completely unknown in human spermatozoa. We confirmed GPR18 expression using RT-PCR and immuncytochemistry experiments and localized the GPR18 protein in the midpiece of human spermatozoa. Stimulation of human spermatozoa with the GPR18 ligand N-arachidonoylglycine induced the phosphorylation of 12 protein kinases, some of them are for example known to be involved in the acrosome reaction. In line with this, N-arachidonoylglycine affected the cytoskeleton by changing levels of F-actin and inducing the acrosome reaction in human spermatozoa in a concentration-dependent manner. Our results indicate that GPR18 might be involved in physiological processes of human spermatozoa, suggesting GPR18 to be a potential player in sperm physiology.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27572937

“Cannabinoid receptor activates spermatozoa”               http://medicalxpress.com/news/2016-08-cannabinoid-receptor-spermatozoa.html

Marijuana use in adults admitted to a Canadian epilepsy monitoring unit.

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“Epidemiologic evidence supporting antiseizure properties of cannabis is limited and controversial.

We determined the prevalence of marijuana use and its perceived effects in patients with and without epilepsy.

Patients with uncontrolled epilepsy or nonepileptic events had a high rate of marijuana use with associated perceived improvements in seizure control, stress, sleep, and drug side effects.

Stress reduction may contribute to the perceived impact of marijuana on seizures and nonepileptic events in adults.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27568641

Cannabinoid 2 receptor is a novel anti-inflammatory target in experimental proliferative vitreoretinopathy.

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“Proliferative vitreoretinopathy (PVR) can develop after ocular trauma or inflammation and is a common complication of surgery to correct retinal detachment.

Currently, there are no pharmacological treatments for PVR.

Cannabinoids acting at cannabinoid 2 receptor (CB2R) can decrease inflammation and fibrosis.

The objective of this study was to examine the anti-inflammatory actions of CB2R as a candidate novel therapeutic target in experimental PVR.

In conclusion, our results indicate that intervention at early stage PVR with CB2R agonists reduces ocular inflammation and disease severity.

CB2R may represent a therapeutic target to prevent PVR progression and vision loss.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27569993

Delineating the Efficacy of a Cannabis-Based Medicine at Advanced Stages of Dementia in a Murine Model.

 

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“Previous reports have demonstrated that the combination of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) botanical extracts, which are the components of an already approved cannabis-based medicine, reduce the Alzheimer-like phenotype of AβPP/PS1 transgenic mice when chronically administered during the early symptomatic stage.

Here, we provide evidence that such natural cannabinoids are still effective in reducing memory impairment in AβPP/PS1 mice at advanced stages of the disease but are not effective in modifying the Aβ processing or in reducing the glial reactivity associated with aberrant Aβ deposition as occurs when administered at early stages of the disease.

The present study also demonstrates that natural cannabinoids do not affect cognitive impairment associated with healthy aging in wild-type mice.

The positive effects induced by Δ9-THC and CBD in aged AβPP/PS1 mice are associated with reduced GluR2/3 and increased levels of GABA-A Ra1 in cannabinoid-treated animals when compared with animals treated with vehicle alone.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27567873

Endocannabinoids inhibit neurogenic inflammation in murine joints by a non-canonical cannabinoid receptor mechanism.

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“Neurogenic inflammation is a local inflammatory response that is driven by the peripheral release of neuropeptides from small diameter afferents which occurs in many organs including joints.

The knee joint has a rich endocannabinoid system which has been shown to decrease acute synovitis.

The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of joint afferents on leukocyte-endothelial interactions within the synovial microcirculation of mice and determine the role of endocannabinoids on this inflammatory response.

These results provide evidence that antidromic stimulation of the mouse saphenous nerve promotes leukocyte rolling within the synovial microcirculation, and that endocannabinoids can attenuate this neurogenic inflammatory response.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27567396