CBD and antibiotics: could CBD enhance the actions of antibiotics?

The WHO (World Health Organisation) has shared its concern about the resistance of bacteria to antibiotics, an issue that could prove to be a threat in the long term. This phenomenon, known as antibiotic resistance, is due to the mutation of bacteria over time. Infections such as salmonellosis, tuberculosis and gonorrhoea become difficult to treat. This is a matter of urgency for health specialists.

Simply put, the overuse of antibiotics - sometimes available without a prescription for both humans and animals - is seriously undermining their effectiveness.

Some scientists have looked into the effectiveness of CBD against resistant bacteria. Let's find out how CBD and antibiotics can work together.

Antibiotics are drugs used to treat and prevent bacterial infections. They work in two different ways: they prevent the growth of bacteria or kill them. They are natural or synthetic chemicals.

It was Alexander Fleming who, by pure chance in 1928, discovered penicillin, a fungus, which had blocked the researcher's bacterial culture. It was then that he realised that it would be an excellent remedy for bacterial infections. It was not until a few years later that his discovery was used.

A great advance for modern medicine!

There are different families of antibiotics (penicillins, quinolones, macrolides, etc.), which are used to cure only a specific type of bacteria or family of bacteria. Contrary to popular belief, antibiotics do not cure all diseases because they are not medicines. They have no effect on viruses or fungi. Antibiotics are only effective on diseases of bacterial origin.

If used inappropriately, antibiotics become less effective, or worse, bacteria become resistant. The urgency of the misuse of antibiotics and their decreasing effectiveness has led researchers to find a solution to reinforce antibiotics. The combination of CBD and antibiotics offers hope and let's see why.

CBD, as we like to call it, is proving its effectiveness. Its virtues are so numerous that science has not finished counting them. Its various anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and analgesic properties, to name but a few, have been scientifically approved in several studies on the famous cannabinoid. Moreover, its anti-bacterial action could become our saviour in the years to come!

Several studies carried out in London in 2019 and in Denmark in 2020 show us that CBD could reinforce the actions of antibiotics. In the various tests carried out in Denmark, the researchers put meticillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus bacteria in vitro and then confronted them with an antibiotic, bacitracin alone and a mixture of bacitracin and CBD. The mixture of CBD and bacitracin was significantly more effective than the others, and reduced the growth of the bacteria. It should be noted that the antibiotic alone was not as effective.

Another Australian study, this time by Professor Mark Blaskovich on gonorrhoea, a sexually transmitted disease that is resistant to antibiotics and is taking its toll in his country. It was after the discovery of the bacteria-killing properties of CBD that the professor set himself the challenge of creating an experimental antibiotic.

The result was very conclusive, as most conventional antibiotics were unable to stop the proliferation of bacteria, the simple addition of CBD made a considerable difference. However, it is still too early to determine the exact influence of CBD on antibiotics in this study.

It must be taken into account that the simple use of CBD on a bacterial infection is not effective in fighting bacteria. The new use of the cannabinoid is revolutionary because it slows down the production of bacteria.

Over time, bacteria become accustomed to antibiotic treatment and eventually become multi-resistant. CBD is not used as a bactericide in its own right but as a complement to a pre-existing antibiotic. It has two roles: it dilutes the antibiotic so that too much is not used, and it reinforces the antibacterial effects of the compound.

Thanks to this combination, bacterial multi-resistance will be lower and the antibiotic will be more effective on the same type of infection and, above all, over a longer period.

Unfortunately, this discovery has not yet been reported in scientific circles and the WHO has not issued any opinion on the subject. However, some scientists remain ambitious about the use of CBD as an antibiotic enhancer, or simply for anti-bacterial purposes. Some even believe that within 5 years the first CBD-enriched antibiotics could be on the market, but very few laboratories have focused on the bactericidal properties of CBD.

This news is full of hope because CBD is a natural product that does not cause any side effects and above all is full of benefits of all kinds. A breakthrough that would alleviate scientists' concerns about antibiotics and above all, discover all the incredible new properties that CBD can offer us. Don't hesitate to tell us what you think on social networks and if you're up for taking CBD-based antibiotics.

And in the meantime,

Cake it easy,

Lindsay.