What are your thoughts about Cannabis? What exactly have you heard about the plant known as Weed? Or Pot as many are fond of calling it?
This article clears all your doubts about Cannabis and opens your eyes to its numerous health benefits.
Cannabis is a plant that has both medicinal and recreational uses. It is classified as a cannabinoid drug.
Different parts of the plant have been used in the production of many cannabis-based products.
Cannabis contains a lot of cannabinoids, but the most abundant ones are the THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol), with the former being psychoactive while the latter is non-psychoactive.
Cannabis has been found to provide a lot of health benefits in recent years, but there is still a need for more research because these benefits keep increasing by the day.
Cannabis can be used in different ways, such as inhaling, mixing as tea, eating in the form of candies or raw. It can also be taken in the form of supplements or capsules or even applied as a topical treatment.
As far back as the 19th century, cannabis has been introduced to Western medicine and has since then been of great health benefits.
According to research, the following are the health benefits of cannabis that everyone should know.
A lot of people believe smoking cannabis has negative effects on the lung, but contrary to this belief, studies have revealed that it actually increases its capacity. It should be noted that smoking cannabis is not the same as smoking cigarette
2. Regulates and prevents diabetes
Due to its antioxidant property, cannabis has been associated with the prevention or regulation of diabetes.
Diabetes is caused by the inability of the body to respond to insulin. Although no cure has been discovered to date, it can be managed.
With the impact of cannabis on insulin, it can be concluded that it can help regulate and prevent diabetes.
According to research, cannabis has been found to regulate blood sugar, improve the flow of blood, and lower blood pressure, which are ways of preventing diabetes.
3. Helps to relieve chronic pain
Due to their chemical makeup, cannabinoids have been used to relieve people with chronic pain. In fact, they are now serving as a great alternative to traditional pain relief drugs, such as opioids. However, more research is needed to support this claim in order to know the method of delivery and also its dosages.
Although this health benefit of cannabis has not been ascertained, according to a research carried out by Thomas M. Clark et al., cannabis contains a cannabinoid known as tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), which helps in suppressing appetite, therefore leading to weight loss.
As we all know, depression is one of the most widely spread sicknesses that attack people even without their knowledge. Endocannabinoid found in cannabis helps to stabilize irregular moods, which is one of the symptoms of depression.
6. Heals broken bones
One of the major elements of cannabis, cannabidiol (CBD) which is a non-psychotic element, has been found to aid the healing process of broken bones. Not only does it help in healing, but it also makes the bones stronger as they heal. This is achieved by aiding the maturation of collagen, which is the protein that joins the body together.
Weird as it may sound, most people believe that cannabinoids have the ability to fight certain types of cancer. This claim is not FDA approved because although some cannabinoids show very good antitumor activity invitro, others don’t.
This is one major health benefit of medical cannabis, the FDA has approved Epidiolex, a plant base cannabidiol oral solution, for the treatment of epilepsy, and it has been found to treat epilepsy in people who are 2 years and older.
Glaucoma is an eye disorder that causes more pressure on the eyeball; it can lead to blindness if proper care is not taken. Cannabis comes into play by reducing the pressure applied on the eyeball, and as a result, giving temporary relief to glaucoma patients.
10. Reliefs pain due to arthritis
Studies have shown that cannabinoids can help in the reduction of inflammatory pain. Although this has not been approved by the FDA yet, another study confirmed the use of Sativex to reduce arthritis pain. More research is ongoing to confirm its effectiveness in human.
11. Helps with ADHD
Cannabis has been found to help individuals with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). ADHD is a kind of disorder that makes people loses focus easily. This can be related to the ability of cannabis to trigger the release of dopamine (a neurotransmitter that promotes the regulation of mood) in the brain. According to users, medical cannabis has fewer side effects than some traditional ADHD medications.
12. Slows down the development of Alzheimer’s disease
Due to the presence of endocannabinoid, which contains anti-inflammatories that attack brain inflammation, the rate of Alzheimer’s disease is slowed down in the body.
According to an immunologist and associate dean for research in the Dental College of Georgia, Dr Babak Baban, CBD helps to bring down levels of interleukin 6 (IL-6), an interleukin that performs the role of an anti-inflammatory myokine.
13. Helps remove Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Symptoms (PTSD)
PTSD is a kind of disorder that comes with the inability of an individual to overcome the experience of a tragic event.
According to PTSD patients, cannabis has been of help in healing this disorder. Researchers have predicted that cannabinoid plant can help in removing traumatic memories from the brain.
It was also revealed in another study conducted by (Ilona Shishko et al., 2018) that cannabis has the ability to reduce activities in the amygdala.
14. Helps with Parkinson’s disease
Based on the biology of cannabis, research has shown that the combination or one of either THC or CBD can help some aspects of Parkinson’s disease, such as insomnia, pain, stiffness, weight loss, tremor, dystonia, or dyskinesias.
However, there’s still need for more research to know the doses of CBD and/or THC that is of help.
15. Reduces side effects linked to hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is an infection caused by a virus that attacks the liver and leads to inflammation. Although cannabis does not help treat the infection, it helps stop the feeling of nausea associated with taking medications for the treatment of hepatitis C virus.
16. Helps fight against alcohol addiction
This is another important health benefit of cannabis. Alcohol can lead to different problems if overused. Cannabis is a better substitute for alcohol as it contains fewer risks.
17. Offers relief to individuals with multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis is a disease that has the ability to shut down the central nervous system by disrupting communication between the body and the brain if not treated promptly. According to experts, CBD affects the brain by binding to certain receptors in the central nervous system. As a result of this interaction, it changes the receptors’ response to stimulation.
This helps relieve inflammation and help with the brain’s immune responses.
18. Treats inflammatory bowel diseases
In different animal studies carried out, the combination of CBD and THC has been found to be of great health benefits. They improve the immune response and also help to block bacteria that cause inflammation in the intestines.
Autism is a neurological disorder that affects social skills and development.
Although no cure has been discovered for this disorder, there are treatments to help manage it.
One of these treatments is CBD oil, extracted from the cannabis plant.
According to parents, CBD oil has helped improve their children’s sleep, mood and overall autism symptoms.
20. Reduces anxiety
A study in the Journal of Affective Disorders revealed that cannabis, when taken in regulated doses, has a way of reducing anxiety in users.
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Cannabis has relaxing effects and sedatives, which help in improving sleep disorder such as insomnia. Although, the effects may not be sustained, which means there’s a need for continuous use.
22. Decrease the symptoms of Dravet’s Syndrome
Dravet syndrome is an intense form of epilepsy found in children.
In a recent study by a US-American scientist, Prof. Orrin Devinsky and other colleagues, CBD was found to reduce the epileptic seizures that come with Dravet syndrome. [Devinsky, O. 2017].
23. Improves symptoms of Lupus, an autoimmune disorder
Lupus is an autoimmune disease that occurs when the immune system is hyperactive and attacks healthy tissues in the body.
Although there’s no cure for it yet, cannabis has the ability to calm the abnormal immune response, therefore reducing the symptoms of Lupus in the immune system.
24. Controls other types of muscle spasms
Because of the numerous number of muscles, the body fights hard to maintain them all at an optimal level. It can become more difficult for people with underlying medical issues.
Research has shown that oral cannabinoids can be of help in the treatment of muscle spasms.
According to a 2018 report from the National Academy of Sciences (The Health Effects of Cannabis and Cannabinoids), different analgesics and anti-inflammatory drugs have been used, but none of them showed great effectiveness as cannabis.
Studies have revealed that both THC and CBD have the ability to stimulate our appetite, the mechanism of action differs, but the end result is the same.
CBD affects appetite by improving the efficiency of the endocannabinoid system, which is responsible for mood and appetite in humans.
On the other hand, THC stimulates appetite by binding with the cannabinoid receptors in the brain and overriding the signals that indicate that we are full.
For people with difficulty in eating, this can be of great health benefit.
Conclusion
Medical cannabis has been used to treat symptoms related to various medical conditions, such as cancer and chronic pain.
However, high-quality studies should still be done to clarify the overall effect of cannabis on human health.
References
Katona I. Cannabis and endocannabinoid signaling in epilepsy. Handb Exp Pharmacol. 2015;231:285–316.
Sun X, Xu CS, Chadha N, Chen A, Liu J. Marijuana for glaucoma: A recipe for disaster or treatment? Yale J Biol Med. 2015;88(3):265–269.
