Best Ways Cannabis Can Affect the Menstrual Cycle

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Cannabis, having its rich spectrum of phytocannabinoids such as THC and CBD, has been found in traditional medicine relating to fertility and reproduction. Now, scientists are beginning to find so how important the endocannabinoid system is always to the biological mechanisms controlling these fundamental processes.



Does cannabis use affect fertility and the menstrual cycle? The menstrual cycle is complex, and cannabis might influence several aspects and stages. Let's see what modern research has to state:

1. THC may reduce fertility during ovulation phase There were a number of studies conducted on the connection between the endocannabinoid system and the female reproductive cycle. It's been repeatedly shown that degrees of the crucial endocannabinoid anandamide vary drastically at various points of the menstrual cycle.

Anandamide levels be seemingly highest at the point of ovulation—the moment that the egg is released from the ovary. As anandamide is an agonist of cannabinoid receptors, one might expect that high quantities of THC (which can also be an agonist) wouldn't necessarily be detrimental to ovulation.


However, a small number of studies from the 1970s and ‘80s suggest that THC includes a strong power to block ovulation in many mammals, including primates (although there do not look like any studies specifically on humans). It seems that THC does so by suppressing the production of a hormone critical to the ovulation process, known as luteinizing hormone.

As with many facets of cannabinoid science, more research is needed to establish just what the hyperlink between cannabis use and ovulation is. Interestingly, however, it will appear that tolerance to the ovulation-blocking aftereffect of THC may build up in habitual users.

2. Cannabis can reduce painful cramps during menstrual period Traditionally, cultures all around the world used cannabis in herbal medicine to take care of painful menstrual cramps. Famously, the British Queen Victoria was also said to have used cannabis to soothe her painful cramps. Considering that her personal physician was the renowned cannabis doctor William B. O'Shaughnessy, that story is almost certainly true. The fact she knighted him some years later, implies that she will need to have really appreciated it!

3. Cannabis use may suppress key hormones during premenstrual phase During the premenstrual phase (which is also known as the luteal phase), hormonal fluctuations can cause a wide variety of symptoms. These generally include pain, irritability, mood swings, fatigue, and bloating. It established fact that levels of certain hormones, including progesterone, significantly increase in this phase (while other hormones, such as for example oestrogen, become depleted).

When those symptoms are abnormally severe symptoms, this phenomenon is called premenstrual syndrome, or PMS. For years, doctors have prescribed supplementary progesterone as a treatment for severe PMS, but recent research suggests that that is ineffective. The general consensus has been that abnormal premenstrual symptoms are connected to progesterone levels being low at a time when they must be high. Actually, some forms of PMS seem to be linked to excessive progesterone levels and reduced oestrogen levels.

Clearly, premenstrual symptoms severe enough to be classed as PMS are a results of hormonal fluctuations and imbalances. Furthermore, there is evidence to declare that cannabis use may have several effects through the luteal phase (the window between ovulation itself and commencement of the menstrual period).

Cannabis use can:

Suppress the degree of progesterone Alter quantities of other important hormones called prolactin and cortisol Inhibit the effectation of THC on luteinizing hormone Again, we've to note that the precise mechanisms at the job have not yet been fully researched and verified. But it is clear that the endocannabinoid system has a function to play, and that women who experience abnormal symptoms currently may benefit from targeted cannabinoid therapies.

4. THC may decrease length of menstrual cycle The evidence for THC causing a shortened menstrual cycle in humans is sparse, but worth mentioning. A 1986 study on the effectation of THC on luteinizing hormone observed the general duration of menstrual cycles decreased in women given cannabis in comparison to those given a placebo.

Interestingly, older studies on non-human primates indicate that THC may alter cycle length, but definitely not shorten it. In a 1980 study on rhesus monkeys, the sample treated with THC overwhelmingly exhibited significant increases in cycle duration. One monkey had a cycle period of 145 days, set alongside the usual 30!

Obviously, more research is necessary before it could be said with any amount of certainty how and if the duration of the menstrual cycle is affected in humans. As with the ovulation-blocking effectation of THC, it could be that tolerance to any possible effect builds up rapidly.

5. THC may affect embryo implantation in the uterus There has been several important studies published during the last decade roughly, investigating the finely-tuned influence of the endocannabinoid system over various key processes associated with conception and early pregnancy. Several of these studies are finding that anandamide levels fluctuate dramatically through the entire monthly cycle. In particular, they reveal that anandamide levels have reached their lowest throughout the “implantation window&rdquo ;.

Note: The implantation window refers to the brief window of time in that your embryo can successfully implant in the endometrium of the womb. This window typically occurs 6-10 days after ovulation and lasts roughly three days.

In studies where anandamide has been artificially increased as of this stage, implantation has generally didn't occur. Considering the fact that anandamide and THC are generally agonists of the cannabinoid receptors, it appears that usage of THC through the implantation window might cause exactly the same effect. However, this concept is overly simplistic, and does not necessarily hold up with such a complex system since the EC system.

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