Over 37 million people in the United States have diabetes and approximately 90-95% of those patients have type 2 diabetes. Diabetes affects how the body uses glucose, a vital source of energy for the cells that make up the muscles and tissues in the body. Glucose is also the brain’s main source of fuel. When a person has diabetes, there can be excess glucose in the blood leading to serious health complications including cardiovascular events, kidney disease, vision loss, and nerve conditions. Symptoms patients may experience can vary and include increased thirst, frequent urination, extreme hunger, blurred vision, and frequent infections. CBGA provides a plant-derived therapeutic option for patients to help combat the symptoms and complications that can accompany type two diabetes. Let’s take a deeper dive into what exactly CBGA is and how it can help patients with type two diabetes.
What is CBGA?
First, what is CBGA? CBGA is a minor acidic cannabinoid that through research has demonstrated its potential to be used in major ways. It is a non-psychoactive cannabinoid, meaning it will not get the consumer “high,” like the well-known Delta 9 THC. Known as the “mother of all cannabinoids,” CBGA is the foundational acidic cannabinoid crucial to the formation of other cannabinoids, including CBDA and THCA. Through decarboxylation, a process where cannabinoids are exposed to heat, CBGA converts to CBG. However, on its own it has shown great therapeutic potential having global solution providers finding ways to extract cannabinoids without the use of heat, and in turn can then produce acidic cannabinoids at a mass scale. This allows for more products with high levels of CBGA available for consumers to purchase.
How can CBGA help patients with type 2 diabetes?
CBGA is a potential plant derived therapeutic to help patients with type 2 diabetes by reducing insulin resistance, as well as helping with the prevention of diabetic complications. CBGA acts as a dual PPARa/y agonist with the ability to modulate the lipid metabolism. PPARa/y is a key receptor to target when helping patients with type 2 diabetes, as it plays a central role in both lipid metabolism and glucose homeostasis. Currently, there are numerous PPARa/y agonist drugs on the market, though they can come with an array of unwanted side effects including bone fractures, fluid retention, weight gain, and congestive heart failure. In a 2015 research study, CBGA demonstrated its ability to improve the lipid metabolism and reduced the accumulation of fat tissue through its activation of PPARs without any harmful side effects, thus reducing the insulin resistance in a type 2 diabetic patient.
Diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States and patients with type 2 diabetes have a 2-3x increased risk of mortality compared to individuals without diabetes. Mortality in type 2 diabetes primarily results from cardiovascular events. Through research, CBGA has demonstrated its ability to inhibit the enzyme aldose reductase, a key enzyme involved in diabetic complications. The need for an aldose reductase inhibitor without side effects is prominent, as current options can cause elevated blood liver enzymes, causing harm to the patient long term.
With many harmful side effects associated with current therapeutic options to help patients with type 2 diabetes, the need for continued research into the effects of CBGA on diabetes is immediate. Current and emerging research shows CBGA may be a great option for patients to rely on in the future.
