Hemp extract from ECS Brands may support weight management and stress, says recent study

Trim Nitro-V Hemp Extract. Image courtsey of ECS Health.

ECS Brands (Bloomfield, CO) recently announced the results of a product safety study for its Nitro V Hemp Extract, found in a weight management product called Trim, from Enlightened Hemp. The 90-day, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled human study, which has yet to be peer-reviewed, found that subjects taking 100 mg of the hemp extract lost up to 22 pounds and seven inches off their waist, with an average weight loss of 10 pounds and a minimum of five inches, without changing their diet or exercising. In contrast, 64% of subjects in the placebo group either gained weight or stayed the same weight

The ingredient promotes weight management by reducing appetite. In the study, subjects taking the hemp extract reported an average reduction of hunger of 61% and a 39% reduction in appetite or desire for sugary foods. In addition of the 37 prediabetic subjects taking the hemp extract saw HbA1c levels restored to normal levels after 90 days. Supplementation also reduced inflammation, with subjects experiencing a 73% reduction in IL-1. Of all the subjects with levels above normal limits of IL-1, IL-6, homocysteine, CRP, and TNF, 92% saw reductions of inflammation to normal levels after 90 days.

The study also found that the hemp extract supports sleep, stress, and even pain. Results showed that subjects taking Nitro-V saw a 50% increase in REM sleep after two weeks, a 307% increase in deep sleep after four weeks, 60% reduction in restless sleep, and a 60% decrease in nighttime wakefulness after 30 days. Based on the GAD-7 (Generalized Anxiety Disorder) survey, subjects taking the hemp extract saw an 85% reduction in anxiety, and based on the Kaiser Permanente Brief Pain Inventory Survey, subjects taking the hemp extract saw an 89% reduction in pain.

Nitro-V Hemp Extract is unique for its naturally elevated levels of non-psychoactive tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), known as the “skinny cannabinoid,” and cannabidivarin (CBDV). “Studies show that THCV reduces appetite and boosts metabolism, both of which contribute towards weight loss,” explains Arthur Jaffee, founder and CEO of ECS Brands. “The cannabinoid’s efficacy with reducing weight could revolve at least in part around how it interacts with the human body’s endocannabinoid system, or ECS. Two receptors, the CB1 and CB2 receptors, dwell within the ECS. The CB1 receptor is activated by the psychoactive cannabinoid THC, the one found in cannabis. This activation leads to hunger — aka, ‘the munchies.’ But THCV, a non-psychoactive cannabinoid that we derive from hemp, blocks the CB1 receptor, which diminishes hunger.”

THCV and CBDV appear in extremely low quantities in hemp. “The high content of these cannabinoids in Nitro-V Hemp Extract is meaningful because it’s hard to craft products with high concentrations of these rare cannabinoids,” says Jaffe. “Additionally, Nitro-V is the only source of high percentage THCV and CBDV on the market that doesn’t come from either federally illegal cannabis or through chemical fabrication procedures that hatch synthetic THCV and CBDV in laboratories – lacking any demonstration for proven safety.”