What can medical marijuana do for you?

There are few subjects that raise such strong opinion among doctors and patients as the topic of Medical Marijuana.  The stigma associated with marijuana use has long been associated with a criminal enterprise and lazy “stoners”. But this stigma is quickly becoming an archaic scapegoat as an abundance of scientific research is proving the effectiveness of medical marijuana for patients in Canada and beyond. As skepticism fades and the biased findings of past studies are debunked, we want to explore what we know medical marijuana can do for you.

 

Chronic Pain Relief

We are finding chronic pain management as one of the most common uses for medical marijuana – especially as our Canadian population ages.  While some people take Advil or Aleve to relieve pain, there are many who cannot take these pills due to pre-existing conditions like GERD (Gastroesophageal reflux disease), ulcers or kidney complications. Medical marijuana patients in Canada can explore various treatment options that offer proven reliable relief from chronic pain. Multiple Sclerosis is one illness known for persistent nerve pain that evades typical treatment options.  While there are prescription pharmaceuticals available to MS patients, they often leave the patient feeling sedated and unable to fulfill even routine tasks on a daily basis.

Also a recognized pain reliever for pain associated with: endometriosis, fibromyalgia, interstitial cystitis, migraine, menstruation, multiple sclerosis.

Tremors & Spasticity

Part of what makes medical marijuana such an effective pain reliever is its function as a muscle relaxant. Here, medical marijuana’s capacity to tame tremors and muscle spasticity is unmatched, especially among pharmaceutical options. For instance, Parkinson’s sufferers have experienced limited success in the past from traditional medicines but finally, Parkinson’s medical marijuana patients report:

• 73% reduced tremor
• 72% reduced muscle stiffness
• 81% reduced pain
• 77% elevated mood

The therapeutic qualities of medical marijuana for patients are growing every day but it is in the fields of chronic pain and muscle spasticity that we are seeing some of the most profound benefits.

 

Access & Availability

With a prescription, patients have access to an abundance of treatment options and can receive their prescriptions without visiting a medical marijuana dispensary or canna clinic. Whether you deal with mobility issues due to MS, anxiety that intensifies in public or you just don’t want to wait in another doctor’s office – medical marijuana can be accessed entirely from your home. Privacy is important – if a visit to a canna clinic or medical marijuana dispensary would jeopardize your confidentiality, then you can procure a prescription and your cannabis online. Like all healthcare in Canada – consulting with a medical professional is free. Advocates and practitioners still work diligently to get prescribed marijuana qualified for full healthcare coverage and we’re hopeful that this will become a reality.

While recent legalization under the Cannabis Act makes access for recreational marijuana available to all Canadians by visiting marijuana dispensaries – it does not assist medical marijuana patients in Canada who require specific strains and THC CBD ratios for symptom suppression and medical conditions. The framework for medical marijuana patients was developed years prior to October 2018 and remains within the infrastructure of the Cannabis Act. While you don’t need a medical marijuana card in Canada to fill your prescription, a prescription allows you to:

• Claim your medical marijuana purchases as a tax deduction
• Carry more of your required prescription
• Access a broader range of medical marijuana products
• Reliable products subject to consistent regulated testing
• Air travel (within Canada) with more of your required prescription
• Grow your own or designate someone to grow for you

More registered medical marijuana patients will designate additional federal funds towards research. For more information on the differences between recreational and medical marijuana please read our blog about Medical cannabis or recreational marijuana, and you can read Health Canada’s guidelines about Cannabis Act for Patients.

Nausea & Weight Loss

The therapeutic benefits of medical marijuana for treating cancer-related side effects (whether from cancer or chemotherapy) are well known and widely utilized – but there are more widespread uses for weight-loss and insulin balance. CBD has been proven to assist with weight loss while THCV can help suppress appetite. I know – It seems counter-intuitive to the common belief that using marijuana gives you the “munchies”. However, medical marijuana LP’s in Canada can grow a variety of strains with differing ratios of the compounds and can further isolate these compounds during production to address multitudes of symptoms or desired health benefits. Amazing little weed.

In a 2013 report – The American Journal of Medicine found that marijuana use was associated with lower levels of fasting insulin and HOMA-IR, and smaller waist circumference.

Furthermore, The American Journal of Epidemiology found that obesity rates among marijuana users are approximately one third lower than non-marijuana users. It might be easy to accept this as a fortunate side-effect of medical marijuana but exciting new research is suggesting broader applications for Diabetes patients.

 

Depression, PTSD & Mood Enhancement

One of the most promising areas of medical marijuana in Canada is the therapeutic benefits for Veterans and patients suffering from PTSD. Symptoms of PTSD include depression, sleeplessness, overwhelming anxiety, fits of extreme anger and aggression, and suicidal thoughts. The research is so impressive that Health Canada offers reimbursement allowances for Veterans accessing medical marijuana at $8.50/gram.

Most LP’s in Canada offer compassion pricing so that Veterans can have their prescriptions filled with any strain thus ensuring accurate symptom suppression. With an estimated 10% of the population suffering from PTSD – the implications for Canadian’s overall health is at epidemic proportion. While this application was intended for veterans, further studies found that therapists and patients suffering from isolated depression, chronic stress and other neuropsychiatric disorders report considerable improvement in symptoms. A 2015 study concluded that “evidence supports systemic CBD as an acute treatment of GAD, SAD, PD, OCD, and PTSD”.

This is not an exhaustive list of what medical marijuana can do for you, it aims to shed light on the big picture of how many possible applications cannabis-based therapies can offer. Studies to date demonstrate the far-reaching health benefits for medical marijuana patients in Canada. Research is underway exploring cancer-cell killing properties of various cannabinoid compounds, patients dealing with auto-immune conditions, like Lupus, Arthritis, and Celiac can also anticipate some findings from the neuro-protective qualities of CBD and the list goes on. The health benefits of this plant are immeasurable and we are at the forefront of major discoveries. We can all plainly see that its applications within the medical realm are irrefutable and we are happy that you’ve chosen to see what it can do for you.