Can laser help CBD work better?
When I was speaking at the Veterinary Encouragement Conference earlier this year on Therapeutic Exercises and Laser Therapy, I got a great question: Can laser help CBD work better because of the upregulation of the receptors? I’ll be honest, I didn't know the answer right off the bat but I did some digging.
And it looks like laser therapy can possibly increase the effects of CBD. Laser therapy works at the cellular level by affecting mitochondria, which, at lower doses, leads to an increase in ATP production, which then controls cAMP levels (cAMP is a secondary messenger that is essential for many biological processes).
One receptor that CBD acts on is CB1, which is highly concentrated in CNS cells. Agonists of these receptors are often linked to analgesic properties as pain pathways in the CNS have many CB1 receptors present on them. These receptors and their signaling appear to be dependent on cAMP regulating the inhibition of calcium channels and activation of potassium channels.
Putting it all together, as ATP in the CNS increases, there is a rise in cAMP, and with that, a secondary effect on CB1 receptors enhancing the analgesic effect of CBD on the CB1 receptors when it is present.
Have you ever used CBD with laser treatment? I would love to hear about it. Tell me about your experience in the comments below.
Sources:
Greineisen WE, Turner H. Immunoactive effects of cannabinoids: considerations for the therapeutic use of cannabinoid receptor agonists and antagonists. Int Immunopharmacol. 2010 May;10(5):547-55. doi: 10.1016/j.intimp.2010.02.012. Epub 2010 Feb 25. PMID: 20219697; PMCID: PMC3804300.
Farivar S, Malekshahabi T, Shiari R. Biological effects of low level laser therapy. J Lasers Med Sci. 2014 Spring;5(2):58-62. PMID: 25653800; PMCID: PMC4291815.
Chung, H., Dai, T., Sharma, S.K. et al. The Nuts and Bolts of Low-level Laser (Light) Therapy. Ann Biomed Eng 40, 516–533 (2012). https://doi-org.vmed-ezproxy.lsu.edu/10.1007/s10439-011-0454-7
Sebastian Mejia, Felix Michael Duerr, Gregg Griffenhagen, Stephanie McGrath; Evaluation of the Effect of Cannabidiol on Naturally Occurring Osteoarthritis-Associated Pain: A Pilot Study in Dogs. J Am Anim Hosp Assoc 1 March 2021; 57 (2): 81–90. doi: https://doi.org/10.5326/JAAHA-MS-7119
Wilson RI, Nicoll RA. Endocannabinoid signaling in the brain. Science. 2002 Apr 26;296(5568):678-82. doi: 10.1126/science.1063545. PMID: 11976437.
Gamble L-J, Boesch JM, Frye CW, Schwark WS, Mann S, Wolfe L, Brown H, Berthelsen ES and Wakshlag JJ (2018) Pharmacokinetics, Safety, and Clinical Efficacy of Cannabidiol Treatment in Osteoarthritic Dogs. Front. Vet. Sci. 5:165. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2018.00165