5 Things You Didn't Know About Medical Marijuana

1. THC and CBD, marijuana's primary cannabinoids, are both cancer killers.

No, I'm not talking about using marijuana to help manage cancer's effects. It's actually anti-cancer.

Recent research out of Spain suggests that THC, marijuana's psychoactive ingredient, kills brain cancer cells. Study co-author Guillermo Velasco claims that when THC was applied to cancerous brain tissue, the cancer cells were killed while healthy cells were left alone.

CBD apparently does the same; a pair of scientists from California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco demonstrated the cannabinoid's ability to stop metastasis in many kinds of aggressive cancer.

Imagine if this plant were discovered in a jungle two weeks ago. What would the news be saying? The CBD article goes as far as to say the breakthrough could "potentially alter the fatality of the disease forever." The lack of media coverage for this is astounding, but that doesn't diminish the research.

2. Marijuana triggers neurogenesis. Layman's terms: It leads to brain cell growth.

Wait....marijuana is supposed to kill brain cells, right? Wrong.

The roots of the marijuana-kills-brain-cells myth are deep despite the lack of credible evidence. The original study supporting this notion is questionable at best and recent research suggests exactly the opposite.

In 2005, a study showed cannabinoids' ability to promote neurogenesis in the adult hippocampus, the brain region responsible for many important brain functions including mood and memory. The authors also cited anti-anxiety and anti-depressant effects that accompany the neurogenesis. This explains why people across California, Colorado, Washington and other marijuana-friendly states often turn to the herb for a mood-boost instead of pharmaceutical drugs. It also supports research that marijuana helps improve cognitive function in bipolar disorder patients. This brings us to our next fact....

3. Suicide rates are lower in areas where medical marijuana is available.

A Denver state-level study analyzed the statistical trend of suicide after introduction of medical marijuana.

From the study:

"Our results suggest that the passage of a medical marijuana law is associated with an almost 5% reduction in total suicide rate, an 11% reduction in the suicide rate of age 20-29 males, and a 9% reduction in the suicide rate of 30-39 males."

It's interesting this hasn't become mainstream data in a country so focused on suicide prevention. Not surprisingly, one of the main reasons cited by the study's authors for the decrease was connected to the at-risk population (20 and 30-something males) replacing alcohol with marijuana. This data makes the strictness of Illinois' new medical marijuana policy even more laughable.

"Don't let usage get out of control! Less people might commit suicide!"

Speaking of marijuana's effects on well-being, I highly recommend this very personal, heart-wrenching article.

But what about the physical effects?

4. There is zero evidence that marijuana causes significant lung damage.

While vaporization is always touted as the safest method of marijuana ingestion, the largest study of its kind suggested marijuana-only smoking is harmless as well:

"We hypothesized that there would be a positive association between marijuana use and lung cancer, and that the association would be more positive with heavier use. What we found instead was no association at all, and even some suggestion of a protective effect."

The above words come from UCLA Medical Doctor Donald Tashkin, author of the study and marijuana researcher of more than 30 years.

Considering the tar in marijuana smoke was found to contain as many harmful carcinogens as cigarette smoke, this study actually strengthens the notion that marijuana is anti-cancer. The plant itself seems to have an offsetting effect for the harmful properties of smoke.

5. There are two completely different types of marijuana, both with different effects on the user.

One of the biggest mistakes made by people who first try marijuana is immediately thinking that it's "not for them." It certainly isn't for everyone, but what if they just tried the wrong kind?

There are hundreds of different strains of marijuana, tagged with names like Blue Dream, OG Kush, Train wreck or Pineapple. All of these are categorized as "Sativa" or "Indica." Here's a simple-as-possible explanation on the difference:

Sativa are usually day-time strains, used to enhance the experience of social events, time in nature or listening to new music. Caregivers often recommend sativa strains for patients seeking relief from depression, PTSD, fatigue and some types of anxiety and pain. Some patients even report positive effects on ADHD while medicating with sativa strains. Although sativa produce an enjoyable effect, they usually are the culprit for an inexperienced user "tweaking out" during one of their first times smoking.

Indicas are often smoked at night due to their narcotic effect on the user. Indica strains are perfect for users suffering from any type of pain, nausea or anxiety. They're also preferable for novice users as they acclimate themselves to the herb. This variety is popular for meditation or yoga due to its mind-calming qualities.

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Marijuana Improves Appetite

Medical Cannabis treatment can improve appetite, ease chronic pain, and more, researchers say.

Though controversial, medical cannabis has been gaining ground as a valid therapy, offering relief to suffers of diseases such as cancer, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, ALS and more.

The substance is known to soothe severe pain, increase the appetite, and ease insomnia where other common medications fail.

In 2009, Zach Klein, a graduate of Tel Aviv University's Department of Film and Television Studies, directed the documentary Prescribed Grass.

Through the process, he developed an interest in the scientific research behind medical marijuana, and now, as a specialist in policy-making surrounding medical cannabis and an MA student at TAU's Porter School of Environmental Studies, he is conducting his own research into the benefits of medical cannabis.

Using marijuana from a farm called Tikkun Olam — a reference to the Jewish concept of healing the world — Klein and his fellow researchers tested the impact of the treatment on 19 residents of the Hadarim nursing home in Israel.

The results, Klein says, have been outstanding. Not only did participants experience dramatic physical results, including healthy weight gain and the reduction of pain and tremors, but Hadarim staff saw an immediate improvement in the participants' moods and communication skills. The use of chronic medications was also significantly reduced, he reports.

Klein's research team includes Dr. Dror Avisar of TAU's Hydrochemistry Laboratory at the Department of Geography and Human Environment; Prof. Naama Friedmann and Rakefet Keider of TAU's Jaime and Joan Constantiner School of Education; Dr. Yehuda Baruch of TAU's Sackler Faculty of Medicine and director of the Abarbanel Mental Health Center; and Dr. Moshe Geitzen and Inbal Sikorin of Hadarim.

In the Hadarim nursing home, 19 patients between the ages of 69 and 101 were treated with medical cannabis in the form of powder, oil, vapour, or smoke three times daily over the course of a year for conditions such as pain, lack of appetite, and muscle spasms and tremors.

Researchers and nursing home staff monitored participants for signs of improvement, as well as improvement in overall life quality, such as mood and ease in completing daily living activities.

During the study, 17 patients achieved a healthy weight, gaining or losing pounds as needed. Muscle spasms, stiffness, tremors and pain reduced significantly. Almost all patients reported an increase in sleeping hours and a decrease in nightmares and PTSD-related flashbacks.

There was a notable decline in the amount of prescribed medications taken by patients, such as antipsychotics, Parkinson's treatment, mood stabilizers, and pain relievers, Klein found, noting that these drugs have severe side effects. By the end of the study, 72 percent of participants were able to reduce their drug intake by an average of 1.7 medications a day.

Overall, Klein believes that the healing powers of cannabis are close to miraculous, and has long supported an overhaul in governmental policy surrounding the drug.

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-01-30/health/36547301_1_medical-cannabis-chronic-pain-muscle-spasms

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Chemists realize cannabis 'pharma factory'

Cannabinoids are produced on the flowers of the female plant of Cannabis sativa in tiny hair-like structures called trichomes, the plant's own "chemical factories." University of Saskatchewan researchers have discovered the chemical pathway that Cannabis sativa uses to create bioactive compounds called cannabinoids, paving the way for the development of marijuana varieties to produce pharmaceuticals or cannabinoid-free industrial hemp. The research appears online in the July 16 early edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Chemical Crystallography - Inexpensive bench top XRD system to determine small molecule structure - U of S adjunct professor of biology Jon Page explains that the pathway is an unusual one, involving a specialized version of one enzyme, called hexanoyl-CoA synthetase, and another enzyme, called olivetolic acid cyclase (OAC), that has never before been seen in plants. "What cannabis has done is take a rare fatty acid with a simple, six-carbon chain and use it as a building block to make something chemically complex and pharmacologically active,". Page led the research with PhD student Steve Gagne, who discovered OAC, and postdoctoral researcher Jake Stout, who discovered hexanoyl-CoA synthetase (reported earlier this year in The Plant Journal). Cannabis has been cultivated for thousands of years for food, fibre, medicine and as a psychoactive drug. Cannabinoids such as delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, are produced on the flowers of the female plant in tiny hair-like structures called trichomes, the plant's own "chemical factories."

The researchers used genomic analysis of isolated trichome cells to produce a catalog of the genes involved in cannabinoid production. Page and his colleagues have already used the new enzymes to coax yeast to produce olivetolic acid, a key metabolic intermediate on the biochemical pathway that leads to cannabinoids. "Now that we know the pathway, we could develop ways to produce cannabinoids with yeast or other microorganisms, which could be a valuable alternative to chemical synthesis for producing cannabinoids for the pharmaceutical industry,". There are more than 100 known cannabinoids, only a few of which have been explored for their possible medicinal uses. THC is the main psychoactive cannabinoid, responsible for the "high" sought by recreational users, as well as medicinal effects such as pain relief, nausea suppression and appetite stimulation. More than 19,000 patients in Canada are authorized to legally use marijuana to benefit from these effects, and many others use cannabinoid-containing drugs via prescription. Another important cannabinoid, cannabidiol (CBD) has anti-anxiety and neuro-protective properties. Page explains that knowledge of the cannabinoid-making pathway could also make matters easier for Canadian farmers.

Plant breeders can now look for cannabis strains that lack key parts of the cannabinoid-making pathway, which would allow for zero-THC varieties (current Canadian regulations call for no more than 0.3 per cent THC for industrial hemp, compared to 15 per cent or higher in the more potent marijuana varieties). Although hemp cultivation in Canada dates back to the 1600s in Quebec, today industrial hemp is a niche crop, grown mostly on the Prairies. Its popularity fluctuates considerably, with about 15,700 hectares (39,000 acres) grown in 2011 according to statistics from Health Canada, which regulates the crop. While hemp is well-known as a fibre crop for everything from textiles, rope and paper, it is more often grown in Canada for its seed. Hemp seed, which is high in omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, is marketed for its healthy qualities. It is used in everything from lactose-free hemp milk, breakfast cereals, snack foods and protein supplements for athletes. Hemp oil is also used in cosmetic skin care products.

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