Endocannabinoids, Exercise, Pain, and a Path to Health With Aging.

Watkins Bruce A.
Molecular aspects of medicine, 2018

Abstract

Physical activity is an important lifestyle factor for growth, development, and sustained health throughout life. In recent years, the benefits of physical activity have drawn more attention to its physiological effects on the body, including well-being. The endocannabinoid system (ECS) has emerged as a focal point to ascertain the mechanisms for how exercise benefits the body and how it reduces or controls pain. The ECS, its ligands [the endocannabinoids (eCB)], receptors (CB1 and CB2), enzymes for the synthesis and degradation of eCB, and the polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) that serve as substrates, comprise a powerful biological organization of multiple controls that affects mood, inflammation, pain, and other neurological aspects of the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system. Recently, investigators have reported increases in circulating levels of eCB after exercise, with some eCB exerting analgesic effects from exercise. The focus of this review is to discuss evidence for the role of eCB and the complexities of the ECS in exercise and pain. Some aspects presented herein are production of eCB and activation of the cannabinoid receptors in the brain following exercise; eCB, pain, and physical activity; oxylipins; and joint pain. Future research on the ECS must include mechanistic approaches to endocannabinoid signaling and explain the role of dietary PUFA in altering signaling of the receptors that affects pain. Additionally, how other types of exercise, such as Tai Chi, which is reported to improve well-being, should be investigated to ascertain if changes in eCB mediate the mind and body benefits of Tai Chi. As we age, exercise in the form of play has evolved with the exploration of our body from walking to running, recreational, and competitive sports, to midlife physical activity focusing on maintaining fitness and a healthy body weight. Furthermore, exercise has been a target of investigation to explore various hypotheses to explain the mechanisms for cognitive benefits in the young and in older adults. The science of exercise has matured to a level of importance in the life cycle to reduce pain with aging and include new investigations on the ECS to explain its role in well-being and improved quality of life in later years.

Keywords

Brain; Dietary PUFA; Endocannabinoids; Exercise; Hippocampus; Inflammation; Neuroplasticity; Pain.

Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

PMID:30290200
DOI:10.1016/j.mam.2018.10.001
Category:General properties of Cannabinoid

Articles similar to "Endocannabinoids, Exercise, Pain, and a Path to Health With Aging."

  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Cannabinoid Signaling in Health and Disease. (Cannabis sativa has long been used for medicinal purposes...)
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Medicinal Uses of Marijuana and Cannabinoids. (In the past two decades, there has been increasing interest in the therapeutic potential of cannabis and single cannabinoids, mainly cannabidiol (CBD) and delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)...)
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: The Medicinal Use of Cannabis and Cannabinoids - An International Cross-Sectional Survey on Administration Forms. (Cannabinoids, including tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol, are the most important active constituents of the cannabis plant...)
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Pharmacology of Cannabinoids. (Dronabinol (Delta 9-tetrahydocannabinol, THC), the main source of the pharmacological effects caused by the use of cannabis, is an agonist to both the CB1 and the CB2 subtype of cannabinoid receptors...)
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Clinical Pharmacodynamics of Cannabinoids. (Our knowledge of the pharmacodynamics of cannabinoids, that is, “the study of the biochemical and physiologic effects of drugs and their mechanisms of action” (The Merck Manual), has considerably increased within the past decade due to the detection of an endogenous cannabinoid system with specific receptors and their endogenous ligands...)
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of Cannabinoids. (Delta(9)-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the main source of the pharmacological effects caused by the consumption of cannabis, both the marijuana-like action and the medicinal benefits of the plant...)
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Clinical Pharmacokinetics of Cannabinoids. (Absorption and metabolism of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) vary as a function of route of administration...)
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Cannabinoids: Medical implications. (Herbal cannabis has been used for thousands of years for medical purposes...)
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Medicinal Properties of Cannabinoids, Terpenes, and Flavonoids in Cannabis, and Benefits in Migraine, Headache, and Pain: An Update on Current Evidence and Cannabis Science ( Comprehensive literature reviews of historical perspectives and evidence supporting cannabis/cannabinoids in the treatment of pain, including migraine and headache, with associated neurobiological mechanisms of pain modulation have been well described... There is accumulating evidence for various therapeutic benefits of cannabis/cannabinoids, especially in the treatment of pain, which may also apply to the treatment of migraine and headache. There is also supporting evidence that cannabis may assist in opioid detoxification and weaning, thus making it a potential weapon in battling the opioid epidemic. Cannabis science is a rapidly evolving medical sector and industry with increasingly regulated production standards. Further research is anticipated to optimize breeding of strain-specific synergistic ratios of cannabinoids, terpenes, and other phytochemicals for predictable user effects, characteristics, and improved symptom and disease-targeted therapies. )
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Nonpsychotropic cannabinoids, abnormal cannabidiol and canabigerol-dimethyl heptyl, act at novel cannabinoid receptors to reduce intraocular pressure. (The objective of our study was to examine the pharmacology of the intraocular pressure (IOP)-lowering actions of the behaviorally inactive cannabinoids, abnormal cannabidiol (abn-CBD), and a cannabigerol analog, cannabigerol-dimethyl heptyl (CBG-DMH), in comparison to that of the nonselective cannabinoid 1 receptor (CB(1)R) and CB(2)R agonist, WIN55,212-2, in Brown Norway rats... There is accumulating evidence for various therapeutic benefits of cannabis/cannabinoids, especially in the treatment of pain, which may also apply to the treatment of migraine and headache. There is also supporting evidence that cannabis may assist in opioid detoxification and weaning, thus making it a potential weapon in battling the opioid epidemic. Cannabis science is a rapidly evolving medical sector and industry with increasingly regulated production standards. Further research is anticipated to optimize breeding of strain-specific synergistic ratios of cannabinoids, terpenes, and other phytochemicals for predictable user effects, characteristics, and improved symptom and disease-targeted therapies. )
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Analysis of cannabinoids in commercial hemp seed oil and decarboxylation kinetics studies of cannabidiolic acid (CBDA). (Hemp seed oil from Cannabis sativa L... There is accumulating evidence for various therapeutic benefits of cannabis/cannabinoids, especially in the treatment of pain, which may also apply to the treatment of migraine and headache. There is also supporting evidence that cannabis may assist in opioid detoxification and weaning, thus making it a potential weapon in battling the opioid epidemic. Cannabis science is a rapidly evolving medical sector and industry with increasingly regulated production standards. Further research is anticipated to optimize breeding of strain-specific synergistic ratios of cannabinoids, terpenes, and other phytochemicals for predictable user effects, characteristics, and improved symptom and disease-targeted therapies. )
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Cannabidivarin-rich cannabis extracts are anticonvulsant in mouse and rat via a CB1 receptor-independent mechanism. (Background and purpose: Epilepsy is the most prevalent neurological disease and is characterized by recurrent seizures... There is accumulating evidence for various therapeutic benefits of cannabis/cannabinoids, especially in the treatment of pain, which may also apply to the treatment of migraine and headache. There is also supporting evidence that cannabis may assist in opioid detoxification and weaning, thus making it a potential weapon in battling the opioid epidemic. Cannabis science is a rapidly evolving medical sector and industry with increasingly regulated production standards. Further research is anticipated to optimize breeding of strain-specific synergistic ratios of cannabinoids, terpenes, and other phytochemicals for predictable user effects, characteristics, and improved symptom and disease-targeted therapies. )
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Molecular Pharmacology of Phytocannabinoids. (Cannabis sativa has been used for recreational, therapeutic and other uses for thousands of years... There is accumulating evidence for various therapeutic benefits of cannabis/cannabinoids, especially in the treatment of pain, which may also apply to the treatment of migraine and headache. There is also supporting evidence that cannabis may assist in opioid detoxification and weaning, thus making it a potential weapon in battling the opioid epidemic. Cannabis science is a rapidly evolving medical sector and industry with increasingly regulated production standards. Further research is anticipated to optimize breeding of strain-specific synergistic ratios of cannabinoids, terpenes, and other phytochemicals for predictable user effects, characteristics, and improved symptom and disease-targeted therapies. )
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Pharmacology of cannabinoids in the treatment of epilepsy. (The use of cannabis products in the treatment of epilepsy has long been of interest to researchers and clinicians alike; however, until recently very little published data were available to support its use... There is accumulating evidence for various therapeutic benefits of cannabis/cannabinoids, especially in the treatment of pain, which may also apply to the treatment of migraine and headache. There is also supporting evidence that cannabis may assist in opioid detoxification and weaning, thus making it a potential weapon in battling the opioid epidemic. Cannabis science is a rapidly evolving medical sector and industry with increasingly regulated production standards. Further research is anticipated to optimize breeding of strain-specific synergistic ratios of cannabinoids, terpenes, and other phytochemicals for predictable user effects, characteristics, and improved symptom and disease-targeted therapies. )
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Exogenous cannabinoids as substrates, inhibitors, and inducers of human drug metabolizing enzymes: a systematic review. (Exogenous cannabinoids are structurally and pharmacologically diverse compounds that are widely used... There is accumulating evidence for various therapeutic benefits of cannabis/cannabinoids, especially in the treatment of pain, which may also apply to the treatment of migraine and headache. There is also supporting evidence that cannabis may assist in opioid detoxification and weaning, thus making it a potential weapon in battling the opioid epidemic. Cannabis science is a rapidly evolving medical sector and industry with increasingly regulated production standards. Further research is anticipated to optimize breeding of strain-specific synergistic ratios of cannabinoids, terpenes, and other phytochemicals for predictable user effects, characteristics, and improved symptom and disease-targeted therapies. )
  • The properties of Cannabinoid: Flavonoid glycosides and cannabinoids from the pollen of Cannabis sativa L. (Chemical investigation of the pollen grain collected from male plants of Cannabis sativa L... There is accumulating evidence for various therapeutic benefits of cannabis/cannabinoids, especially in the treatment of pain, which may also apply to the treatment of migraine and headache. There is also supporting evidence that cannabis may assist in opioid detoxification and weaning, thus making it a potential weapon in battling the opioid epidemic. Cannabis science is a rapidly evolving medical sector and industry with increasingly regulated production standards. Further research is anticipated to optimize breeding of strain-specific synergistic ratios of cannabinoids, terpenes, and other phytochemicals for predictable user effects, characteristics, and improved symptom and disease-targeted therapies. )

Previous article

Cannabinoid Signaling in Health and Disease.

Next article

Cannabinoids.