Research over the years has produced findings that point to the possibility that weed may help treat certain ailments. Here is a list of them.
Chronic pain
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine evaluated more than 10,000 scientific studies on marijuana's therapeutic applications and adverse effects last year.
One subject that received thorough consideration in the study was the use of medical marijuana to ease chronic pain—more than 25 million persons in the US experience chronic pain, the main contributor to disability.
The review concluded that it is advantageous to treat chronic pain with marijuana, products containing cannabinoids, the drug's active ingredient, or other types of substances that act on the same brain receptors marijuana does.
Alcohol and drug addiction
Another extensive examination of the information, which was published in the journal Clinical Psychology Review the previous year, revealed that marijuana use might be beneficial for people who are battling opiate or alcohol addictions.
The National Academies of Sciences review shows that marijuana use increases the likelihood of abusing and becoming dependent on other drugs. Consequently, this conclusion can be debatable.
Additionally, the more marijuana a person takes, the more likely it is that they may develop a marijuana use disorder. Those who began using marijuana when they were young are more prone to acquire disorders related to their use of the drug.
Depression, social anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder
For the review study that was published in Clinical Psychology Review, the entirety of the published scientific literature that explored the use of marijuana to treat the symptoms of mental illness was assessed.
According to available data, weed may be used to treat several mental health issues. The authors of the study claim that some evidence supports the use of marijuana to treat the signs and symptoms of depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
However, they caution against using marijuana to treat a number of other mental health conditions, including bipolar disorder and psychosis.
Contrary to the review's assertion that there is some evidence to suggest that marijuana may lessen the symptoms of social anxiety, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine review revealed that regular marijuana users might be at increased risk of developing social anxiety.
Cancer
Oral cannabinoids are beneficial in treating chemotherapy-induced vomiting and nausea, and some small studies have suggested that smoking weed may also help to reduce these symptoms.
According to some studies on cancer cells, cannabis may be able to destroy some types of cancer or inhibit their growth. Cannabinoids are a safe drug. However, early research that carried out tests on this notion in humans revealed that they were unsuccessful in preventing or curing cancer.
Multiple sclerosis
Although the benefits of using oral weed for a brief period are small, they may reduce the symptoms of spasticity in MS patients.
Epilepsy
The use of medications containing cannabidiol (CBD) to treat two uncommon, severe, and distinct types of epilepsy known as Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome that are challenging to control with different types of other medication was authorized by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in June 2018. Epidiolex is the name of this CBD-based medication.
CBD is one of the numerous compounds included in marijuana. There are no psychoactive effects. The use of CBD in the treatment of certain illnesses has undergone a certain level of purification. The findings of the investigation and the clinical trials formed the basis for the approval.
In comparison to a placebo, a 2017 study found that children that have Dravet syndrome experienced considerably fewer seizures when they consumed CBD.
Seizures associated with Dravet syndrome are protracted, frequent, and sometimes fatal. 1 in 5 Dravet syndrome sufferers does not live to be 20 years old.
In the trial, 120 Dravet syndrome patients between the ages of 2 and 18 were randomly allocated to receive either an oral CBD solution or a placebo for 14 weeks in addition to their regular treatment.