As per the National Center for Drug Abuse Statistics (NCDAS), 50% of people 12 and older have used illegal substances at least once.
We want to talk about drug addiction specifically related to cocaine and methamphetamine, which is a prevalent problem, with no FDA-approved medications to treat either problem.
One study explores the possibility of using Beta-Caryophyllene as a therapeutic candidate in addressing the complex subject of addiction. In this blog, we’ll delve deep into the widespread challenge of drug addiction in the US and explore how there’s research that studies Beta-Caryophyllene for those seeking innovative intervention.
But first, we’ll take a minute to understand how big this problem really is. How deep are the tentacles of drug addiction?
Overview of Methamphetamine and Cocaine Addiction
Methamphetamine is a highly addictive and potent drug that stimulates the central nervous system.
- In 2021, approximately 101,000 individuals aged 12 or older started using methamphetamine.
- 1.6 million individual aged 12 and older had a methamphetamine use disorder during the same year.
- Benzodiazepines, cocaine, or methamphetamine were present in 63% of opioid deaths.
Meth is also known to cause neurotoxicity, inflammation, and oxidative stress in the brain. Chronic use of the drug can cause various physical and psychological problems, including insomnia, cumulative brain changes, memory loss, hallucinations, reduced coordination, violent behavior, paranoia, excessive weight loss, severe heart problems, and more. Psychotic symptoms of health are common, with around 42.7% of users experiencing lifetime symptoms.
Similarly, cocaine is another deadly substance that can lead to drug addiction. Here are the numbers that draw an appalling but accurate picture:
- A 2022 Monitoring the Future Survey estimated that 1.5% of 12th graders, 0.5% of 8th graders, and 0.3% of 10th graders reported using cocaine in the past 12 months.
- In 2021, 1.4 million people aged 12 or older reported dealing with a cocaine use disorder in the past 12 months.
- That same year, approximately 24,486 people lost their lives to an overdose involving cocaine.
Cocaine also has various physiological and psychological effects. In small amounts, it causes euphoria and makes you hypersensitive, energetic, and mentally alert. Large amounts of cocaine can lead to erratic, violent, and bizarre behavior. It can also cause anxiety, paranoia, and vertigo.
Long-term use alters brain pathways, making users less sensitive to natural rewards and more focused on seeking the drug. Tolerance and sensitization develop, increasing the risk of overdose.
This paints a rather grim picture, and for decades, researchers have been trying to find new ways to address this addiction crisis.
We want to focus on one study: one that involves Beta Caryophyllene.
Beta-Caryophyllene – A Promising Treatment for Drug Addiction & Disorders
Researchers have conducted different animal-based studies to explore the potential of BCP as a possible intervention for drug addiction and substance abuse disorders.
Beta-caryophyllene has undergone investigation in several behavioral experiments, including drug self-administration, intracranial self-stimulation, and conditioned place preference for cocaine, meth, and more drugs.
In those experiments, BCP demonstrated the ability to prevent or reverse behavioral changes induced by drug exposure. Both CB2R and PPAR play a role in BCP’s success as an intervention option for drug disorders.
Beta-Caryophyllene and Methamphetamine Use Disorder
Research on pharmacotherapeutic agents suggests that no drug has demonstrated a strong and broad effect in stopping the use of meth in Phase II trials. That said, beta-caryophyllene might prove to be a promising option.
In one study, researchers conducted various experiments on animals to see how beta-caryophyllene affects methamphetamine use and seeking behavior.
When they gave rats BCP, it reduced how much meth they wanted to take, showing that it lowered the reward they got from the drug and their motivation to seek it out. The more BCP they got, the less they showed interest in meth.
In the same study, researchers also found that blocking CB2 receptors with a specific drug called AM630 stopped BCP from working, indicating that CB2 receptors might play a crucial role in BCP’s effectiveness.
However, when they gave high doses of BCP to the mice that didn’t have CB2 receptors, it still had the same effect on reducing meth use. It means that pathways other than activating CB2 receptors might be at play when researchers administer BCP in high doses.
Beta-caryophyllene also lowered the brain’s response to meth, making it less rewarding and reducing the urge to seek it out. The researchers looked into how BCP affects the brain’s dopamine levels, which relate to meth’s effects.
While BCP alone didn’t change dopamine levels much, it did reduce the spike in dopamine caused by meth, which might explain how it works against its use.
These findings suggest that beta-caryophyllene could be a promising treatment for drug addiction in meth use disorder.
Beta-Caryophyllene and Cocaine Use Disorder
Cocaine drug addiction does not have an FDA-approved treatment. One does wonder, could beta-caryophyllene be a candidate for treatment in the future?
According to a study on rats, beta-caryophyllene helped reduce their desire to use cocaine. When researchers gave BCP to rats through injections or orally, it helped lower their:
● Need for cocaine
● Preference for places associated with cocaine
● Urge to seek out cocaine after taking a break from it
Interestingly, BCP didn’t affect how much food the rats wanted or their hyperactivity caused by cocaine. It also didn’t become addictive when researchers tried swapping it with other drugs.
BCP targets a specific CB2 receptor, which could potentially regulate cocaine-induced sensitization and conditioned place preference. It could prove to be helpful in the management of drug addiction.
However, even when the researchers blocked that receptor or others like CB1 or GPR55 in rats, BCP still worked against cocaine use.
It highlights that beta-caryophyllene is using pathways other than CB2 receptors in its promising treatment of cocaine use. When researchers blocked other receptors, like PPARα and PPARγ, it reversed BCP’s effects, which indicates that these receptors might play a role in how BCP works.
In the same study, researchers looked into how BCP affects the brain. They found that it’s better at reducing the rewarding effects of cocaine when researchers used certain types of brain stimulation, especially ones that activate dopamine neurons in a specific part of the brain.
Beta-Caryophyllene – A Possible Intervention Option for Meth & Cocaine Drug Addiction?
This is a big question. And the answer could potentially be monumental in managing drug addiction in the future. Based on this one study, it does appear that beta-caryophyllene seems to be a promising therapeutic candidate for drug addiction. Its potential lies in modulating various pathways linked to meth and cocaine use disorders.
With further research, including studies on human subjects, beta-caryophyllene might open up new treatment options and avenues for addiction intervention. It can become a ray of hope for people facing drug addiction.