Herbal Treatment for Atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is the leading cause of heart disease and stroke in the developed world.

delta-9-tetrahydrocannabino (THC): combats the blood-vessel disease atherosclerosis in mice. THC is the major active component of marijuana. This diease occurs when damage to blood vessels, as with say nicotine from cigarettes, causes an immune response that leads to the formation of fatty depostis in tarteris. These deposits from because immune cells can linger too long leading to an inflamed blockage that snares fatyy molecules. THC seems to tone down this immune response and reportedly reduced the progression of blood-vessel blockage formation by more than one-third. Feeding the mice a compound that interfered with binding of THC to CB@ abolished the therapeutic effect of the THC.

The dosage was inmportant in this study since at higher and lower doses, THS had no therapeutic effect on blood vessels. Also, it is important to note that marijuana smoke can have harmful effects on the heart. What this study reports to is just one active ingredient in marijuana.