EthicaCBD has a clear core mission: Ethical CBD For Better Living. During their journey, they’ve worked with a world-leading cosmetics team to develop an all-natural topical gel for muscles, joints, and tendons, which is now being used by many practitioners across the UK as a formula to recommend to clients with localised pain & inflammation, especially those who suffer from post-treatment soreness.  

Before practitioners began to adopt the gel, the efficacy of CBD + CBG gel became more widely acknowledged by consumers when in early 2023, Sir Ian Botham - England Cricketing Icon - shared his success story with the public.  

In July 2022, at a point where Sir Ian was at his least mobile, so much so that he could not walk 18 holes of golf, his son sent him a tube of EthicaCBD Sports Gel to trial. Ian used the cannabinoid gel 2-3 times daily for 3 weeks. After 3 weeks, he could comfortably walk 18 holes of golf and began to return to a more active lifestyle. Only 3 months later, he competed in a competitive golfing event in St. Andrews, where he stated: “without the gel, I wouldn’t have made it around”. 

This is one isolated and anecdotal example of such efficacy, but EthicaCBD has received feedback from hundreds of people who report similar levels of benefit when using their topical formula, which combines CBD and CBD with other historically acclaimed therapeutic botanicals such as menthol, camphor, peppermint oil, and black pepper oil. Among these, practitioners who see cannabinoid topicals working on a daily basis within their practice models.  

  The following statement is from Aaron Butcher of AJB Chiropractic: “It significantly reduces the post-treatment soreness that people feel after having any kind of manual therapy work done. It works hand in hand with the adjustments we provide here, in a way that fits within the average Joe’s way of life and routine… it’s amazing.” 

 CBD (cannabidiol) has gained major consumer popularity over the last few years, but there remains another cannabinoid present in EthicaCBD’s formula which may be contributing to the therapeutic outcomes described by the user. That cannabinoid, CBG (cannabigerol) is the first phytocannabinoid to develop within the hemp plant, which then breaks down into 100+ other cannabinoids as it matures, such as CBD and THC (tetrahydrocannabinol - the psychoactive ‘high’). Whilst developing the gel, research emerged to suggest that CBD and CBG have a synergistic relationship whereby the sum of the effects is greater than that expected of an additive therapy. 

 Further into the ‘effects’ of cannabinoids, a common explanation is as follows:  

Humans have an endocannabinoid system (ECS) which is a neuro-modulatory system that strives to keep our biological processes in a state of homeostasis. The ECS interacts with other systems in the body, such as the immune system, the central nervous system, the endocrine system, and the digestive system in order to maintain homeostasis. By helping the ECS fulfil this function of maintaining balance, phytocannabinoids are proposed to have therapeutic effects: the benefits of which are observed within the systems of interaction e.g. immune system or central nervous system. 

Even considering the synergistic and potentially exponential relationship between CBD and CBG, the multitudes of anecdotal feedback for the gel implied localised efficacy far greater than what we might expect from the ECS interaction summarised above. 

Following this research, DevelRX and EthicaCBD have worked alongside a world-renowned team of cannabinoid and drug efficacy researchers to create a literature review which outlines 8 other modes of action by which cannabinoids are believed to work against inflammation and pain:  

1. GPR55 is a receptor involved in pain and inflammation control. CBD inhibits the receptor activity to reduce inflammation. 

2. TRP Channels mediate sensory stimuli. CBD and CBG interact with them to provide analgesic and anti-inflammatory effects. 

3. Prostaglandins play a role in inflammation. CBG can reduce their production and therefore exhibit anti-inflammatory properties.  

4. Cytokines are signalling-proteins that control inflammation. Both CBD and CBG can lower levels of inflammatory cytokines. 

5. Nuclear Transcription Factors regulate inflammation and cell survival, and CBD and CBG have demonstrated the ability to reduce proinflammatory cytokines, increase anti-inflammatory cytokines, and prevent cell damage and death. 

6. T-type Calcium Channels impact nerve cell excitability. CBD and CBG can modulate their activity, potentially offering pain relief.  

7. Voltage-Gated Sodium Channels are involved in pain reception, and CBD and CBG inhibit them, potentially providing pain relief. 

8. Adenosine, when activated, has anti-inflammatory effects, and CBD can influence its turnover, enhancing and prolonging its anti-inflammatory effects.  

To learn more about the impacts and benefits of topical cannabinoid gels, visit EthicaCBD at Therapy Expo 2024. Looking to connect with pioneering practitioners who share their passion for better living, EthicaCBD will collaborate to provide communities with Ethical CBD For Better Living.