Exercise boosts the body’s own ‘cannabis,’ which reduces chronic inflammation:

London: Exercising increases the body’s own cannabis-like substances, which helps reduce inflammation and may help treat conditions like arthritis, cancer, and heart disease.

In a new study published in Gut Microbes, researchers from the University of Nottingham discovered that exercise intervention not only reduced pain but also reduced the levels of inflammatory substances in people with arthritis (called cytokines). It also increased levels of endocannabinoids, which are cannabis-like substances produced by their own bodies.

Surprisingly, exercise caused these changes by altering the gut microbes. Exercise is known to reduce chronic inflammation, which causes a variety of diseases such as cancer, arthritis, and heart disease, but little is known about how it does so.

A team of scientists led by Professor Ana Valdes of the University’s School of Medicine tested 78 people with arthritis. Thirty-eight of them did 15 minutes of muscle-strengthening exercises every day for six weeks, while the other forty did nothing.

Participants who completed the exercise intervention had not only reduced their pain, but they also had more microbes in their guts that produce anti-inflammatory substances, lower levels of cytokines, and higher levels of endocannabinoids at the end of the study.

The rise in endocannabinoids was strongly linked to changes in gut microbes and anti-inflammatory substances called SCFAS produced by gut microbes.

Indeed, the increase in endocannabinoids was responsible for at least one-third of the gut microbiome’s anti-inflammatory effects.

Doctor Amrita Vijay, a Research Fellow in the School of Medicine and the paper’s first author, stated, “Our research clearly shows that physical activity increases the body’s own cannabis-like substances. This can have a positive impact on a variety of conditions. As interest in cannabidiol oil and other supplements grows, it’s important to remember that simple lifestyle changes like exercise can influence endocannabinoid levels.”