Cannabis for Health: It’s High Time You Got Over Your Cannabis Prejudices

A lot of people out there have their own prejudices against cannabis or marijuana for that matter. And not only that, non-marijuana smokers also have their biases against marijuana smokers. This is particularly widespread in the American culture. Albeit, a major part of the American society now opposes the prohibition on cannabis and stands pro regulation and legalization of this green herb.

When it comes to facts, 8 states have already completely legalized both medical as well as recreational marijuana in terms of possession and sale, including Alaska, California, Maine, Colorado, Massachusetts, Nevada, Washington, and Oregon. Moreover, the District of Columbia has legalized medical and recreational cannabis in terms of personal use but not for commercial sale. Overall, 29 American states currently have their own medical cannabis campaigns. This means if you are lucky to be residing in these states, you should indeed not keep from the various benefits of medical cannabis.

Many people believe in the legalization of cannabis for its medical uses, which has surged a debate in America on recreational and medical cannabis. And, even though there are a lot of current cannabis programs going all over the United States, people still have their own myths about it. Therefore, we aim to bust all the myths about cannabis here, pertaining to their medicinal values. So, let’s get started.

Ingredients

To start with, cannabis consists of two active chemicals and both of these are found to have medicinal applications, according to researchers. The first chemical is cannabidiol or CBD that impacts the brain without any high. And, the other chemical is tetrahydrocannabinol or THC that contains pain relieving properties. Both of these chemicals have their individual health benefits, which are also found in THC pills, Dronabinol, Nabilone, etc.

Relaxes and diminishes anxiety

Cannabis can relax and anesthetize a person, which is one of the additional attractions of medical cannabis. Users claim that this plant helps in suppressing nausea and relieving pain.

A study conducted by Harvard Medical School in 2010 advocated that cannabis is quite beneficial owing to its reduced anxiety results, which in turn elevates the mood of the consumer and also acts as a sedative. However, high doses of this can amplify anxiety and can even result in paranoia.

Treats severe illnesses

Cannabis, in its medicinal form, is often advised to patients on chemotherapy. This is done to deal with the side effects of chemotherapy, since cannabis reduces vomiting and nausea emanating from this cancer treating therapy.

Furthermore, cannabis is also advised to AIDS patients in order to stimulate their appetite. In other similar conditions, cannabis helps to relieve such symptoms. These include multiple sclerosis muscle spasticity, pain arising from cancer, drug-resistant epilepsy, substance use disorders, psychosis, schizophrenia, etc.

Reverses effects of tobacco

Medical cannabis is known to reverse the carcinogenic effects that come from tobacco and thus improves lung health. According to a study that was published in 2012 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, marijuana can actually increase your lung capacity without impairing its functioning. The study was conducted on 5115 young adults, which showed positive effects of cannabis on the functioning of lungs as compared to tobacco smokers.

Keeps you slim

One of the medicinal benefits of cannabis is that it increases your metabolism and aids in maintaining a slender body. According to a study that was released in the American Journal of Medicine, it is suggested that cannabis consumers are slimmer than average people and boast a healthier metabolism, though they eat more calories owing to munchies. Moreover, cannabis also changes the response to sugar in cannabis consumers.

A journal, named Obesity and Cannabis use, conducted a study, which found out that regular users of cannabis are less probable to become obese as compared to non-smokers, since the former ones have a low body mass index score, which is generally considered an indication of good health. Moreover, low BMI people have low body fats with a lesser diabetes risk.

Impels creativity

Although creativity has nothing to do with your physical health, it sure is a great factor for your mental health. Studies have proved that the green herb can have positive mental effects, specifically associated with creativity.

Cannabis consumers are certainly great when asked to come up with fresh ideas. This is because the herb releases dopamine in the brain, which in turn allows people to shed away their inhibitions and become more relaxed with a new perception of things.

A study conducted in 2012 in the Consciousness and Cognition journal, revealed that cannabis spurs creativity in people, particularly advancing their verbal fluency.  Moreover, some researches show that cannabis stimulates some parts of the brain that handle certain emotions and movements, including pleasure, coordination, appetite, sensation, learning, etc.

Helps to abstain from alcohol

Cannabis is far much safer than alcohol, since it is relatively less addictive and does not cause physical damage. Not only this, it even helps people who are trying to curtail their drinking problem. On the other hand, alcoholism leads to physical disorders such as endocannabinoid system disruptions.

The Harm Reduction Journal published a research that proves cannabis as a less harmful alternative to alcohol, illegal drugs, and even prescription drugs. This is because cannabis does not have adverse side effects and withdrawal issues.

In fact, cannabis is the safest drug available, according to a study published in the Scientific Reports journal, which quoted the herb to be 114 times less lethal than alcohol. In this study, cannabis was tested against alcohol, heroin, tobacco, cocaine, ecstasy, and crystal meth.

So, these are only some of the medicinal benefits of cannabis. The green herb is used for many other medicinal purposes, including these. However, despite of the vast expansion of medical cannabis campaigns that are running in America right now, many people still believe that cannabis can harm their health.

But after reading this article, you would know that everything is not bad about cannabis, when it is taken for particular medical issues and illnesses. And, we are not just saying this for the sake of it, it is proven by a lot of scientific studies and facts that point towards the medical efficacy of this green herb. So, look past your own biases about cannabis and do not stop yourself from taking advantage of this plant.