A group of Israeli scientists have reason to believe that a chemical compound found in marijuana has the power to expedite the healing of broken bones. According to their study cannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD) stimulated the healing process of broken rat femurs. In fact, when treated with the CBD compound, the broken rat femurs not only healed in less time than the femurs of the rats used as controls in the experiment, but they also were discovered to be stronger and less likely to sustain future fractures. The researchers from Tel Aviv University and Hebrew University of Jerusalem published their findings in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research last week.
The reason CBD has this bone-healing power is because the compound helps the bones to mineralize sooner, Haaretz reported. One of the scientists conducting the study, Dr. Yankel Gabel, said that the bones grew stronger because the compound enhances “the maturation of the collagenous matrix,” in the bone, “which provides the basis for new mineralization of bone tissue.”