Jul 11

Your Skin Produces Marijuana-Like Substance

LiveScience
Marijuana-like substances made by the skin are necessary for a healthy complexion, a new study concludes.

Back up. We’ve got pot growing out of our skin?

Essentially, yes. The skin has joined the growing club of organs that is known to produce “endocannabinoids” — the body’s own reefer. The biggest producer of endogenous pot is the brain.

Significantly, the new study pins down long-suspected connections between brain and skin and between stress and zits.

Your thinking skin

In the skin, explained lead researcher Tamás Bíró of the University of Debrecen, Hungary, these compounds help the sebaceous glands protect us from harsh outer elements, such as the drying effects of wind and sun. Cannabinoids are thought to have a similar role in the leaves of the marijuana plant.