In a study by researchers from Wake Forest University School of Medicine, the University of North Carolina, and the University of South Carolina School of Medicine, cannabis with both high CBD or high THC improved key markers of metabolic and immune health in an animal model of obesity.
In the study, published in the American Journal of Physiology-Cell Physiology, female mice were divided into lean, obese placebo, obese CBD, and obese THC groups. Obese mice had been on a high-fat diet for 16 weeks before beginning a four-week cannabis intervention. Doses were given three times per week, with high-CBD cannabis providing around 4.2 mg/kg and high-THC cannabis about 7.3 mg/kg.
Obesity was found to increase insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH). Both high-CBD (10.5%) and high-THC (18.16%) cannabis significantly reduced these effects. Notably, the improvements occurred without measurable weight loss or reduced food intake, suggesting the benefits were not tied to changes in diet or body weight.
The study also found that diet-induced obesity led to higher levels of macrophages, including pro-inflammatory M1-like macrophages, in liver and fat tissue. Treatment with either high-CBD or high-THC cannabis reversed these effects, aligning with the improved insulin sensitivity and liver health observed.
The study concludes by saying “Despite the legal complexities surrounding cannabis use, these data suggest both CBD and THC can be a viable therapy to target macrophages and improve metabolic health and immune dysregulation with obesity.”
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