Why Does Cannabis Work?

Many people understand what cannabis does—but most of us don’t know why it does it.

Cannabis is a beautiful, sophisticated, mysterious, and inspiring plant—and, as scientists in the last 25 years have discovered, the human body is designed to interact with it via the endocannabinoid system (ECS).

Our bodies are a series of complex systems, most of which you are probably familiar with—the nervous system, the digestive system, circulatory system, etc. Roughly 25 years ago, a Los Angeles doctor working to understand how THC, the compound responsible for much of cannabis’ range of effects, stumbled upon a complex network of cannabinoid receptors (CBr, CB-1) in cells located within both the central and peripheral nervous system.

In the years since, doctors and scientists have identified other cannabinoid receptors (including cannabinoid receptor 2, or CB-2), located within the immune system, digestive system, and most of the body’s major organs. These receptors are unique in that they are able to receive the CBN, THC, and CBD molecules found within cannabis.