Gastrointestinal Disorders 

Gastrointestinal (GI) disorders, including functional bowel diseases such as irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)  and inflammatory bowel diseases such  as Crohn’s disease  and colitis, afflict more than one in five Americans, particularly women.  While some  GI disorders may  be controlled by diet  and pharmaceutical medications, others are poorly moderated by conventional treatments. Symptoms  of GI disorders often include cramping, abdominal pain, inflammation of the lining of the large and/or small intestine, chronic diarrhea, rectal bleeding, and weight loss. 

Although several anecdotal reports1-2  and a handful  of case reports3-4 exist  in the scientific  literature supporting the use  of cannabinoids  to treat symptoms  of GI disorders, virtually no clinical trial work has been performed  in this area, aside from  a 2007 clinical  study assessing  the impact  of oral THC  on colonic motility.[5] 

However, numerous preclinical studies demonstrate  that activation  of the CB1  and CB2 cannabinoid receptors exert biological functions on  the gastrointestinal tract.[6]  Effects  of their activation in animals include suppression  of gastrointestinal motility,[7] inhibition  of intestinal secretion,[8] reduced acid reflux,[9] and protection from inflammation[10], as well as  the promotion  of epithelial wound healing  in human tissue.[11] 

As a result, many experts now believe that cannabinoids and/or modulation  of the endogenous cannabinoid system represents  a novel therapeutic target  for the treatment of numerous  GI disorders — including inflammatory bowel diseases, functional bowel diseases, gastro-oesophagael reflux conditions, secretory diarrhea, gastric ulcers,  and colon cancer.12-13