Pet Wellness: Harnessing the Power of CBD and CBG Together
Cannabis research has traditionally focused on the plant's star player: Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). However, recent years have seen increased interest in the plant's other compounds, notably CBD and CBG together. While each of these cannabinoids has unique properties and potential health benefits, there's growing excitement around the concept of cannabinoids working together to enhance their effects. This phenomenon is known as the entourage effect.
Understanding CBD and CBG
Before diving into their combined effects, let's briefly touch on what CBD and CBG are. CBD, the second most abundant cannabinoid in the cannabis plant, is well-known for its potential therapeutic benefits, such as promoting relaxation and supporting a normal inflammatory response, without producing the psychoactive effects associated with THC. On the other hand, CBG, often found in lower concentrations, is the precursor to other beneficial cannabinoids like CBD and THC. CBG is known as the mother of cannabinoids because, in its acidic form of CBGa, it’s the precursor to most of the other cannabinoids. When the hemp plant grows, CBGa produces three primary cannabinoids:
- CBDa (cannabidiolic acid)
- CBCa (cannabichromene acid)
- THCa (tetrahydrocannabinol acid)
In the chemical process known as decarboxylation CBGa becomes CBG, CBDA becomes CBD, CBCA becomes CBC, and THCA becomes THC. CBG is being studied for its potential ability to promote the body’s innate resistance to pathogens, maintain a normal inflammatory response, and help support cognitive function.
CBD and CBG Together: A Powerful Duo
When CBD and CBG are taken together, they may complement each other's effects and work synergistically. This is partly because they influence the endocannabinoid system (ECS), a complex cell-signaling system involved in maintaining bodily homeostasis, in different ways. Research has also found that when CBD is combined with THC, CBG, and other cannabinoids, it can offer more therapeutic benefits overall. CBD and CBG have different molecular structures, which means they bind with the body’s cannabinoid receptors in different ways. Because of this, they affect the body differently. While CBD has a low affinity for the endocannabinoid system’s primary receptors, CB1 and CB2, and instead interacts with other receptors in the body, CBG is thought to bind directly with CB1 and CB2 receptors, particularly CB2. CBD's indirect interaction with the endocannabinoid system is believed to enhance CBG's effect. It inhibits the uptake and breakdown of anandamide, an intriguing cannabinoid in the body that binds to CB1 and CB2 receptors. This potentially leads to higher levels of anandamide, amplifying the effects of CBG on these receptors. Additionally, some studies suggest that CBG acts to enhance CBD's ability to regulate inflammatory pathways. In essence, when used together, these two cannabinoids may offer more potent benefits than when used separately.
Individual Benefits of CBD and CBG
Now that you know that both CBD and CBG have different ways of interacting with the endocannabinoid system, it’s time to take a closer look at the benefits of each compound individually. CBD has many mental and physical benefits, but the benefits are primarily connected with mental well-being. While CBD works on the mind, the benefits of CBG have more to do with how the body functions. The benefits of CBD include:
- Helps animals maintain a normal and relaxed disposition
- Enhances your pet’s brain function
- Supports behavior modification and training programs
- Helps maintain normal emotional balance
- Helps maintain a normal inflammatory response
- Stimulates the enzyme that produces the body’s natural endocannabinoids
The benefits of CBG include:
- Supports weight loss and a healthy appetite
- Maintains a normal inflammatory cytokine cascade
- Supports normal GI health and function
- Supports the growth of beneficial bacteria in the intestines
- Helps keep animals in peak condition
These benefits are combined and balanced when the compounds are offered together. Let’s take a look.
CBD and CBG Together: Combined Effects
As you can see, the individual benefits of CBD and CBG are numerous. But, when they’re combined, they work together for a well-balanced product. Here's how CBG and CBD’s interaction may be beneficial:
Inflammatory Processes
Both CBD and CBG may help relieve discomfort associated with normal daily exercise and activity. When used together, they could potentially offer enhanced relief from occasional discomfort, which could support pets with joint tenderness due to everyday activity, resulting in a happier, healthier dog.
Emotional Disposition
CBG oil is believed to interact with the brain's serotonin receptors, which help maintain normal emotional balance. CBD, on the other hand, helps cope with external stresses. The combination of these two could potentially offer a more holistic approach to managing your dog’s emotional disposition.
Cognitive Benefits
In preliminary studies, CBD and CBG oil both help reduce the effects of normally induced environmental stress. Combined, they might provide better protection for the nervous system, potentially enhancing your pet’s brain function and supporting normal nerve conduction and memory recall.
Response to Bacteria
Early studies suggest that CBG oil might promote the body’s innate resistance to pathogens, especially against drug-resistant strains of bacteria. When combined with CBD, which is believed to have immune-enhancing effects, it promotes normal detoxification processes, supporting a healthy immune system in all animals.
Reduced Discomfort
Both CBD and CBG oil have been studied for their potential analgesic properties. When used together, they could potentially enhance the body’s normal repair of connective tissue and joints, resulting in help with discomfort associated with normal daily exercise and activity.
The Entourage Effect for a Combined Effect
The benefits discussed are thought to be a result of the entourage effect. Full spectrum CBD oils, like those available at Earth Buddy, not only contain the main cannabinoids, but as many cannabinoids as possible. This keeps the product as natural as possible despite minimal processing. Cannabinoids interact together with terpenes and other compounds from hemp and marijuana plants for a combined effect producing a list of potential therapeutic benefits when taking cbd.
Finding Quality CBD Products
Unlike prescription medications, the world of supplements is highly unregulated, which makes it difficult to obtain a high-quality product. This is especially true for CBD products. And, since CBG oil hasn’t been extensively studied, it’s more difficult to find in general. In many regions, including the United States, supplements are not subject to pre-market approval, which means they can be sold without first proving efficacy and safety to regulatory bodies such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Instead, the responsibility falls on the manufacturers to ensure their products are safe and accurately labeled, and the consumer to verify the manufacturer’s statements.
COA or Lab Results for CBD Products
In the world of supplements, where regulatory scrutiny can be lax, obtaining a Certificate of Analysis (COA) or checking lab results of a product is an essential step for consumers to ensure safety and quality. A COA is a document issued by an accredited third party laboratory that shows exactly what’s in the product, validating the manufacturer's claims. Lab results, or the certificate of analysis, also verifies the absence of harmful contaminants such as heavy metals, pesticides, or microbial contaminants. By examining the COA, consumers can confirm if the supplement indeed contains the stated levels of active ingredients and ensure it is free from harmful substances prior to taking CBD or offering it to their pet. Not all companies readily provide this information, but reputable supplement manufacturers often make these reports accessible on their websites or upon request, providing an extra layer of transparency and trust. It's always advisable to buy from brands that offer this level of transparency and rigor in their product testing.
Cellular Support Hemp Extract
Earth Buddy’s Cellular Support Hemp Extract contains a 4:1 ratio of CBG:CBD providing the benefits discussed above. In addition to CBG oil and CBD oil, the product also contains other cannabinoids and terpenes to promote the entourage effect, as well as organic MCT oil. The lab results can be found here and contain information regarding the following:
- Potency
- Heavy metals
- Microbial contaminants
- Pesticides
- Terpenes
- Residual solvents
Earth Buddy prides itself on offering full transparency to the consumer. The results above not only show the purity and potency of the product but also proves the lack of pesticide use. Earth Buddy uses an aquaponics system that captures glacial melt from the Rocky Mountains. The aquaponic pond contains a rich ecosystem of fish, frogs, and turtles. They also compost on the farm and add the nutrients back into the soil along with the hemp stalks that were grown the prior year. If a company is not willing to provide this type of information to you, it’s a red flag that indicates their product may not be what they claim. Companies should be fully transparent and willing to answer any questions you may have. If you have any questions regarding Earth Buddy’s products, feel free to ask.
For further reading, we recommend:
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6021502/
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33168643/
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/neuroscience/cannabigerol
- https://jpet.aspetjournals.org/content/376/2/204
- https://www.hindawi.com/journals/ecam/2022/3336516/
- https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fvets.2020.569565/full
