Cannabis benefits: A look at the top health benefits of cannabis.

1. Relieve stress, promote relaxation and recovery

Many regular users of cannabis have mentioned the cannabis health benefits they have experienced. Cannabis has the properties needed to shift the body towards a relaxed state. Cannabis has the immense potential to  shift the focus away from stress and toward recovery. Instead of thinking of cannabis as a drug able to heal us from certain diseases, think of it as a recovery facilitator. 

Cannabis helps our body do the work of healing by helping it get in the right state of mind. It helps us get out of a fight or flight state and instead into a rest and digest state, as far as our nervous system goes. Therefore, it is safe to say that promoting relaxation and relieving stress is one amongst the many cannabis benefits. Taking a little bit of marijuana has been proven to reduce stress levels.

2. Anti-Inflammatory properties

One of the potential health and  medical benefits of cannabis is its anti-inflammatory properties. Cannabinoids are potent anti-inflammatory agents and they exert their effects through induction of apoptosis, inhibition of cell proliferation, suppression of cytokine production and induction of T-regulatory cells (Tregs).

As studies show, not only does cannabis have a positive effect in taming inflammation and a myriad of ailments associated with inflammation, the entourage effect created by the combination of cannabinoids, including THC, gives a person an even better result. When this synergy takes place, inflammation is greatly relieved, and thus so are the diseases and pains that go with it.

3. Alleviates Stress 

Some would say there are few things better in this world for alleviating stress than some good cannabis. You know it is time to relax when the work is done, and your hand-rolled joint is waiting for you. However you choose to spend your time anxious, cannabis can help to reduce stress and provide your body the break it needs.

Relieving stress as a medical cannabis benefit has been researched extensively and the results show that cannabis can reduce stress.There are several studies showing that cannabis can help beat stress and improve overall health. However, cannabis’ stress- and anxiety- busting properties could be most effective when microdosed. Due to cannabinoids’ biphasic effects, compounds like THC can beat anxiety in low doses and promote anxiety in higher doses.

You may watch a movie, go for a long walk, eat a healthy meal, or read a book. No matter the activity, the result of taking cannabis is you feeling less stressed. With cannabis, a little can go a long way, so remember to start low and go slow. The amount of THC in marijuana reacts differently to different people so it is always safer to buy marijuana from a reputed cannabis dispensary.

4. Reduce Nausea and Vomiting after Chemotherapy

Numerous studies have demonstrated that cannabis is helpful in cancer treatment and  there are immense medical benefits to cannabis.  Cannabinoids can help improve nausea and vomiting that results due from chemotherapy. It is wonderful to hear that those undergoing chemotherapy can find some relief from cannabis. Especially when these unfortunate symptoms are so resistant to other treatments, they have responded well to cannabis.

More recently, scientists reported that THC and other cannabinoids such as CBD slow growth and/or cause death in certain types of cancer cells growing in lab dishes. Some animal studies also suggest certain cannabinoids may slow growth and reduce spread of some forms of cancer. So,does cannabis help treat cancer? It is too early to make a definite statement but cannabis has been used successfully in cancer treatment.

There have been some early clinical trials of cannabinoids in treating cancer in humans and more studies are planned. While the studies so far have shown that cannabinoids can be safe in treating cancer, they do not show that they help control or cure the disease.

5. Melt Away Muscle Tension

Relaxing muscle tension is one of the cannabis benefits and it is being used in the treatment for muscle related injuries. Adding to the mental relaxation that cannabis produces, it also helps melt away our physical tensions. Of the cannabinoids inside the cannabis plant, THC is the primary driver of this health benefit. It is well known in the research literature that THC is a muscle relaxant, among its many other benefits.

Are you feeling pain? Are you  tight and tense? Enjoying some cannabis is often the perfect treatment to make it all go away. If you’ve ever tried doing yoga, stretching, or mobility work while high, you know what we’re talking about. The next time you feel tense or have muscle pain, take some medical cannabis, try finding a nice quiet spot to sit comfortably. Spend some time focusing on your body and your breathing. Notice the tight areas and let the cannabis help you melt away the tension.

6. Increases Mindfulness

An interesting cannabis benefit is that it increases mindfulness and helps in improving meditation practice too. Cannabis helps shift your attention and focus to the now. How we use cannabis has a significant impact on the benefits we acquire in those moments. Many consumers use cannabis to promote more present-focused and mindful attention. Whether the activity at hand is watching a movie, eating a meal, or going for a walk in nature. Whatever you’re doing, cannabis can help you focus on the little things that make each moment special. 

7. Helps In Losing Weight

According to Tom Clark, chair of the biological sciences department at Indiana University South Bend, “People assume marijuana users are heavier because it stimulates appetite,”. Clark and his team analyzed 17 studies that included almost 156,000 participants, and found that marijuana users were lighter. Their body mass index (BMI) is 7 percent lower on average—for a 6-foot guy, that’s a 15-pound spread. Most interesting, marijuana users are 30 to 35 percent less likely to be obese.

THC seems to bump metabolism over time, so even if there’s an initial hit of the munchies, the metabolism boost compensates—and then some. “And if modern strains have lost the munchie effects, but increased metabolic rates remain, I would think the effects of reducing obesity would be even greater,” Clark says. And you don’t have to be a frequent smoker to lose pounds. A one-time user bumps his metabolism for up to four weeks. This is definitely one of the most controversial cannabis benefits.

8. Mental Health Management

In recent years there has been growing interest in studying medical cannabis and mental disorders. Topics have spanned various human conditions, from anxiety and depression to schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s disease. Overall, these studies are too small and too few to draw conclusions. That said, cannabis has been shown to help alleviate several symptoms associated with mental disorders. 

If you are struggling with your mental health, see a doctor to get the help you deserve. For those experiencing general discomfort and concerns, cannabis can be the medicine which may provide that mental health boost you need. Combining cannabis with other health activities can compound these benefits even further.

9. Pain Management

The phytochemicals in medical marijuana have been clinically proven to help reduce pain and inflammation, which is especially helpful for those recovering from surgery.

Cannabis works as a medicine and  has been used to treat pain since as far back as 2900 B.C. More recently, scientists have discovered that certain components of cannabis, including CBD, are responsible for its pain-relieving effects. Studies have shown that CBD may help reduce chronic pain by affecting endocannabinoid receptor activity, reducing inflammation, and interacting with neurotransmitters.

Some research suggests that CBD may be effective for certain types of pain related symptoms, including nerve pain and back pain, when used on its own. However, it seems to be most effective when combined with THC. Several human studies have found that a combination of CBD and THC is effective in treating pain related to multiple sclerosis and arthritis.

An oral spray called Sativex (nabiximols), which is a 1:1 combination of THC and CBD, is approved in several countries to treat pain.

All you have to do is go around asking medical cannabis patients what they think about using medical cannabis for pain management. People suffering from various persistent pain related symptoms have found the benefits of cannabis to outweigh every other option they’ve tried. 

10. Preventing relapse alcohol addiction 

One of the interesting cannabis benefit is that it can help people recover from addiction, such as alcohol. In one of the studies done in 2018, researchers found that CBD is helpful in assisting people suffering from addiction to alcohol. During the pre-clinical trials, which used laboratory rats, they found that CBD reduced stress-related craving, poor impulse control, and anxiety.

11. Marijuana for better sleep

Marijuana appears to improve sleep in certain cases. For people with certain symptoms and conditions such as chronic pain, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and multiple sclerosis, marijuana can work as a medicine to help them fall asleep faster, wake up less during the night, and enjoy better sleep quality overall.

The Intricate Influence of the Placebo Effect on Medical Cannabis and Cannabinoids.

Is cannabis a placebo?

Rather than being either a placebo or drug, cannabis might be a drug both conveying and inducing a meaningful response. This may explain the rather broad palliative effects of cannabis that knowingly improve the quality of life of patients, but also the blurred boundaries between medical and recreational cannabis.

Conclusion:

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Epidiolex (cannabidiol) [CBD] oral solution for the treatment of seizures associated with two rare and severe forms of epilepsy, Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome, in patients two years of age and older. Cannabidiol (CBD) as an add-on therapy may reduce drop seizures by 50% in some adults and children with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS), according to research .

Cannabis sativa L. preparations have been used in medicine for millennia. However, concern over the dangers of abuse led to the banning of the medicinal use of marijuana in most countries in the 1930s. Only recently, marijuana and individual natural and synthetic cannabinoid receptor agonists and antagonists, as well as chemically related compounds, whose mechanism of action is still obscure, have come back to being considered of therapeutic value and improving the quality of a patient’s life.

However, their use is highly restricted. Despite the mild addiction to cannabis and the possible enhancement of addiction to other substances of abuse, when combined with cannabis, the therapeutic value of cannabinoids is too high to be put aside. Numerous diseases, such as anorexia, emesis, pain, inflammation, multiple sclerosis, neurodegenerative disorders (Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, Tourette’s syndrome, Alzheimer’s disease), epilepsy, glaucoma, osteoporosis, schizophrenia, cardiovascular disorders, cancer, obesity, and metabolic syndrome-related disorders, to name just a few, are being treated or have the potential to be treated by cannabinoid agonists/antagonists/cannabinoid-related compounds.