Body compounds can protect you against pain

The human body can release chemical compounds like marijuana that can help the body to kill its own pain in case of pain from severe trauma like accidents.

Scientists have always known that sudden shock, like wounds from gun shot, or accidents causing severe damage to body, delays the body’s pain due to the trauma. This is known as stress-induced analgesia, or body’s reaction to shield the severe pain for sometime.

Scientists working for University of Georgia had reported in their new study that for the first time body’s naturally occurring compounds like cannabinoids, also known as 2-AG, platys an important role in controlling the pain from shock to cause stress-induced analgesia.

The new research makes it possible to identify the new target to treat stress related pain like marijuana does, but without the psychological side effects of the drug concerned. Researchers of the study had also discovered a chemical compound that can block the breakdown of the compound called 2-AG, and may be used to as a treatment for pain. The newly discovered pain anecdote is currently patented by University of California, Irvine, whose researchers had also worked on the same project along with scientists from University of Georgia. Researchers are hopeful that the new drug becomes the drug of choice for dealing with stressful situations and will not have the legal hassles like marijuana.

Reference: University of Georgia, news release, July 2005