Showing posts with label cannabis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cannabis. Show all posts
Tuesday, 24 February 2015
Monday, 23 February 2015
The Tree of Life
The Tree of Life
Mankind has been using the cannabis plant for thousands of years, it has given us food, fuel and shelter. Some of the oldest artifacts of ancient man show how early and comprehensive our interactions with the hemp plant have been.
The seeds, it’s fruit, are an excellent source of nourishment, and have been used as a food source since recorded time. It’s fibers have been used as rope and textiles, it has lashed our homes together, clothed us and powered our great sailings ships. Hemp seed oil has lit our lamps, bringing light into our darkest nights, it can even fuel our modern means of transportation. Henry Ford designed his first cars to run on hemp based bio-fuels. There are thousands of ways we have found the hemp plant beneficial to our physical survival and comfort.
How Cannabis Helps My ADHD – A Patient’s Story | TheCannabisGeek.com
How Cannabis Helps My ADHD – A Patient’s Story | TheCannabisGeek.com
Let me introduce myself, I am a 32-year-old entrepreneur with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and I use cannabis, daily, to manage my condition. I’ve spent the past decade running international businesses on two continents, and have previously been in a long-term relationship for nine years; which provided me with a beautiful 6-year-old daughter whom I care for jointly.
My story starts when I was diagnosed at age two with ADHD and spent the next three years on a series of diets that have affected my eating habits to this day. I didn’t have chocolate, sugar, wheat or cow’s milk until I was five. From then I was medicated with amphetamine-derived drugs for over 20 years. First Ritalin, then in my 20s Concerta. By age 10 I was prescribed double the maximum daily dose (which is 6 tablets or 60 mg) and I was given 12 tablets or 120mg methylphenidate per day. By age 15 I was on 4.5 x the maximum daily dose at 25 tablets and 250mg per day.
Thursday, 19 February 2015
How to Choose a Medicinal Cannabis Strain?
How to Choose a Medicinal Cannabis Strain?
Choosing to use medicinal cannabis (also known as medical marijuana) can be a very easy decision to make. Choosing which variety of cannabis is best for a particular individual or condition can be more complicated.
Many patients have never tried or grown cannabis before discovering it as a medicine. Even for those who have, knowing what works for recreational and social purposes does not always translate into knowing the most suitable variety of cannabis for specific medical needs.
Wednesday, 18 February 2015
Indica vs. Sativa: Understanding The Differences
Indica vs. Sativa: Understanding The Differences
Indica and sativa are the two main types of cannabis. Here’s how to tell them apart.
Cannabis is one of the oldest crops known to mankind, with records of its cultivation dating back thousands of years.
Today, it is widely accepted that marijuana has two different species: Cannabis indica and Cannabis sativa. Cross-breeding of the two types has led to a wide variety of hybrid strains with unique characteristics.
The differences between indica and sativa remain a subject of much debate, especially among scientists who study the plant. However, most agree that indica and sativa plants are distinct in a number of ways.
Today, it is widely accepted that marijuana has two different species: Cannabis indica and Cannabis sativa. Cross-breeding of the two types has led to a wide variety of hybrid strains with unique characteristics.
The differences between indica and sativa remain a subject of much debate, especially among scientists who study the plant. However, most agree that indica and sativa plants are distinct in a number of ways.
Cannabis May Be Best Treatment For Fibromyalgia, Survey Finds
Cannabis May Be Best Treatment For Fibromyalgia, Survey Finds
(Photo: Andrea Guerra/Flickr)
A new survey from the National Pain Foundation suggests medical marijuana may top currently available pharmaceuticals for treating fibromyalgia.
The survey, conducted online, asked more than 1,300 patients with the chronic pain disorder to rate the effectiveness of treatments that they’ve tried. Medical marijuana was compared with the only three drugs approved by the FDA for fibromyalgia: Savella, Lyrica and Cymbalta.
Just 8% of patients that tried Cymbalta and 10% that tried Lyrica or Savella found the drugs to be “very effective” for managing symptoms of the disorder.
For each of the three drugs, over 60% of patients reported that it “does not help at all.”
On the other hand, 62% of patients who tried medical marijuana found it to be “very effective.” Another 33% said it “helps a little,” and only 5% felt that using cannabis for fibromyalgia “does not help at all.”
“I’ve found nothing that has worked for me, apart from marijuana,” explained one patient in the survey. “Nothing but medical marijuana has made the greatest dent in the pain and mental problems,” wrote another.
Fibromyalgia is a disorder of the central nervous system that affects 2-4% of the population, predominately females. But while scientists still puzzle over the true cause of fibromyalgia, the latest findings shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.
In a 2011 study conducted by Spanish researchers, patients who used cannabis showed improvements in pain, stiffness, relaxation and perception of well-being.
“The use of cannabis was associated with beneficial effects on some fibromyalgia symptoms,” noted the authors.
Likewise, a 2012 survey found that 1 in 8 Canadians living with fibromyalgia relies on marijuana to cope with their symptoms.
“We think that there’s probably a role for that class of compounds, the cannabinoids in general,” explains Dr. Mark Ware, associate professor of anesthesia at McGill University and co-author of the Canadian survey. “It’s just a question of working out how that’s going to be put into practice,” he adds.
An earlier study by Dr. Ware and his team revealed that nabilone, a pill containing marijuana’s active ingredient, THC, could help fibromyalgia sufferers sleep better. Nabilone has also been shown to reduce pain and improve quality of life scores in patients with the disorder.
Still, some patients prefer natural cannabis over synthetic versions, which are known to have more potent side effects.
“I have patients with a range of pain syndromes who have failed all their other treatments and for whom herbal cannabis has been the only reasonable option that they have that controls their symptoms,” says Dr. Ware.
Cannabis May Protect The Aging Brain, Say Experts
Cannabis May Protect The Aging Brain, Say Experts
(Photo: Isabella Bello/Flickr)
New research from a pair of neurologists at the University of Dublin claims cannabis could be the key to fighting disorders of the aging brain.
As the brain gets older, it becomes more susceptible to degenerative disorders like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. Although different areas of the brain are affected, what underlies both conditions is the progressive death of brain cells.
While a number of therapies can be prescribed, scientists have yet to develop treatments that can slow or cure these disorders. However, researchers now believe compounds that target the body’s marijuana pathways, known as the endocannabinoid system (‘endo’ stands for endogenous), could lead to the development of such treatments.
“Modulation of the endogenous cannabinoid system is emerging as a potentially viable option in the treatment of neurodegeneration,” wrote University of Dublin researchers Veronica Campbell, PhD and Steven Fagan, PhD last month in the British Journal of Pharmacology.
“The endocannabinoid system has been identified as a possible therapeutic target against neurodegeneration as a number of alterations in the endocannabinoid system have been noted in Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and Huntington’s disease,” they continued.
According to the pair, studies have already demonstrated the promise of THC, the main compound in cannabis, in managing a number of Alzheimer’s related symptoms:
“Dronabinol, derived from the phytocannabinoid THC, is beneficial in reducing anorexia, increasing body weight and improving behaviour in elderly Alzheimer’s disease patients. Dronabinol has more recently been assessed in a pilot study with Alzheimer’s patients where it improved nocturnal motor activity and reduced agitation and aggression, without undesired side effects.”
What’s more, previous studies found THC could prevent the loss of dopamine neurons in animal models of Parkinson’s. “The endocannabinoid system is believed to be a promising therapeutic target for delaying disease progression and ameliorating Parkinsonian symptoms,” the researchers note.
“The endocannabinoid system is believed to be a promising therapeutic target”Likewise, Dr. Fagan and Dr. Campbell say that studies point to “the alteration of multiple components of the endocannabinoid system in the progression of Huntington’s disease,” a movement disorder that shares a number of similarities with Parkinson’s.
Although trials involving herbal cannabis as a treatment for Parkinson’s or Alzheimer’s are lacking, the authors highlight research on a cannabis-based pharmaceutical, Sativex, as an example of its therapeutic promise.
“Preclinical studies have investigated the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant capabilities of the phytocannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD), combined with THC, in the form of the cannabis-based medicine Sativex, which is already used as a therapeutic agent for multiple sclerosis,” they wrote.
Sativex has been studied in patients with multiple sclerosis and is currently available in 25 countries for the treatment of MS-related symptoms. However, the drug’s potential to treat Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease has been noted as well.
Previous research has suggested both the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties of marijuana as key factors in its protective effects.
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