Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Jun;23(3):401-420.
doi: 10.1007/s11154-021-09682-w. Epub 2021 Aug 30.

The effects of cannabis and cannabinoids on the endocrine system

Farah Meah  1 , Michelle Lundholm  2 , Nicholas Emanuele  1 , Hafsa Amjed  3 , Caroline Poku  3 , Lily Agrawal  1 , Mary Ann Emanuele  4
Affiliations
Review

The effects of cannabis and cannabinoids on the endocrine system

Farah Meah et al. Rev Endocr Metab Disord. 2022 Jun.

Abstract

With the increase in cannabis use due to policy changes and areas of decriminalization, it is important to recognize the potential impact of these substances on endocrine processes. Cannabinoids have many effects by activating the endocannabinoid system. This system plays a role in the normal functioning of nearly every organ and consists of the body's natural endocannabinoids, the cannabinoid receptors, and the enzymes and processes that regulate endocannabinoids. Exogenous cannabinoids such as Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) are known to act through cannabinoid type 1 and 2 receptors, and have been shown to mimic endocannabinoid signaling and affect receptor expression. This review summarizes the known impacts of cannabis on thyroid, adrenal, and gonadal function in addition to glucose control, lipids, and bone metabolism, including: reduced female fertility, increased risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes, reduced sperm counts and function, lower thyroid hormone levels with acute use, blunting of stress response with chronic use, increased risk of prediabetes but lower risk of diabetes, suggested improvement of high density lipoproteins and triglycerides, and modest increase in fracture risk. The known properties of endocannabinoids, animal data, population data, and the possible benefits and concerns of cannabinoid use on hormonal function are discussed. The interconnectivity of the endocrine and endocannabinoid systems suggests opportunities for future therapeutic modalities which are an area of active investigation.

Keywords: Bone; Cannabis; Diabetes; Endocannabinoids; Fertility; Thyroid.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Substance Abuse Center for Behavior Health Statistics and Quality. Results from the 2018 National Survey on drug use and Health: Detailed Tables. SAMHSA. 2018. https://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2018-nsduh-detailed-tables . Accessed 18 Jul 2021.
    1. WHO. The health and social effects of nonmedical cannabis use. 2016. https://www.who.int/substance_abuse/publications/cannabis_report/en/inde... . Accessed 20 Jul 2021.
    1. Pertwee R, Howlett A, Abood M, Alexander S, Di Marzo V, Elphick M, et al. International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology. LXXIX. Cannabinoid receptors and their ligands: beyond CB1 and CB2. Pharmacol Rev. 2010;62:588–631. https://doi.org/10.1124/PR.110.003004 .
    1. Rock E, Parker L. Constituents of Cannabis Sativa. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2021;1264:1–13. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-57369-0_1 . - DOI - PubMed
    1. Lewis M, Russo E, Smith K. Pharmacological Foundations of Cannabis Chemovars. Planta Med. 2018;84:225–33. https://doi.org/10.1055/S-0043-122240 . - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources

  NODES
INTERN 3
twitter 2