Endocannabinoid

Endocannabinoids are a class of naturally occurring neuromodulatory lipid compounds produced within the brains and central nervous systems of humans and other vertebrate animals. The two most widely studied endocannabinoids are anandamide and 2-AG (2-arachidonoylglycerol).

The broader endocannabinoid system consists of the actual endocannabinoid compounds themselves, the specific receptor sites they target and bind with throughout the body, as well as the metabolic enzymes that break them down shortly after they carry out their signaling functions.

Endocannabinoids help maintain homeostasis and regulate a wide range of critical bodily systems and physiological processes including sleep, mood, memory, appetite, pain response, immune function, and many others. Exogenous cannabinoids sourced from plants, known as phytocannabinoids, can also bind to the same endocannabinoid receptor sites in the body. This helps explain cannabis' profound ability to strongly influence the same biological systems normally regulated by mammalian endocannabinoids.