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The effects of cannabis are caused by chemical compounds in the cannabis plant, including 113 different cannabinoids such as tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and 120 terpenes, which allow its drug to have various psychological and physiological effects on the human body. Different plants of the genus Cannabis contain different and often unpredictable concentrations of THC and other cannabinoids and hundreds of other molecules that have a pharmacological effect, so the final net effect cannot reliably be foreseen.
Medical cannabis, medicinal cannabis or medical marijuana (MMJ), is cannabis and cannabinoids that are prescribed by physicians for their patients. The use of cannabis as medicine has not been rigorously tested due to production and governmental restrictions, resulting in limited clinical research to define the safety and efficacy of using cannabis to treat diseases.
Cannabidiol (CBD) is a phytocannabinoid discovered in 1940. It is one of 113 identified cannabinoids in cannabis plants, along with tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), and accounts for up to 40% of the plant's extract. As of 2022, clinical research on CBD included studies related to the treatment of anxiety, addiction, psychosis, movement disorders, and pain, but there is insufficient high-quality evidence that cannabidiol is effective for these conditions. CBD is also sold as a herbal dietary supplement promoted with unproven claims of particular therapeutic effects.
Cannabis, also known as marijuana or weed, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various traditional medicines for centuries. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the main psychoactive component of cannabis, which is one of the 483 known compounds in the plant, including at least 65 other cannabinoids, such as cannabidiol (CBD). Cannabis can be used by smoking, vaporizing, within food, or as an extract.
Lester Grinspoon was an American psychiatrist and long-standing associate professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School best known for his groundbreaking works on the science and social policy of cannabis, psychedelics and other drugs, and for his commitment to changing harmful drug policies. He concurrently served as a senior psychiatrist at the Massachusetts Mental Health Center in Boston, Massachusetts, for 40 years. Grinspoon was a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the American Psychiatric Association. He was founding editor of The American Psychiatric Association Annual Review and Harvard Mental Health Letter. Grinspoon was editor of Harvard Mental Health Letter for fifteen years.
Cannabis indica is an annual plant species in the family Cannabaceae indigenous to the Hindu Kush mountains of Southern Asia. The plant produces large amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), with total cannabinoid levels being as high as 53.7%. It is now widely grown in China, India, Nepal, Thailand, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, as well as southern and western Africa, and is cultivated for purposes including hashish in India. The high concentrations of THC or THCV provide euphoric effects making it popular for use for several purposes such as recreational drugs, clinical research drugs and the potential of Cannabis or selected constituents for new drug research or being used in alternative medicine, among many others.
Cannabis tea is a cannabis-infused drink prepared by steeping various parts of the cannabis plant in hot or cold water. Cannabis tea is commonly recognized as an alternative form of preparation and consumption of the cannabis plant, more popularly known as marijuana, pot, or weed. This plant has long been recognized as an herbal medicine employed by health professionals worldwide to ease symptoms of disease, as well as a psychoactive drug used recreationally and in spiritual traditions. Though less commonly practiced than popular methods like smoking or consuming edibles, drinking cannabis tea can produce comparable physical and mental therapeutic effects. Such effects are largely attributed to the THC and CBD content of the tea, levels of which are drastically dependent on individual preparation techniques involving volume, amount of cannabis, and boiling time. Also in common with these administration forms of cannabis is the heating component performed before usage. Due to the rather uncommon nature of this particular practice of cannabis consumption in modern times as well as the legality of cannabis throughout the World, the research available on the composition of cannabis tea is limited and based broadly around what is known of cannabis as it exists botanically.
The Society of Cannabis Clinicians (SCC) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization registered in the United States, dedicated to educating healthcare professionals about the medical use of cannabis. Its mission is to unite into one association members of the various medical specialties and allied professionals with this common purpose. SCC is one of the oldest active organization of its kind, and one of the few global non-profit medical societies related to cannabis and cannabinoids, along with the International Cannabinoid Research Society and the International Association for Cannabinoid Medicines.
In the United States, the use of cannabis for medical purposes is legal in 38 states, four out of five permanently inhabited U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia, as of March 2023. Ten other states have more restrictive laws limiting THC content, for the purpose of allowing access to products that are rich in cannabidiol (CBD), a non-psychoactive component of cannabis. There is significant variation in medical cannabis laws from state to state, including how it is produced and distributed, how it can be consumed, and what medical conditions it can be used for.
Dronabinol (INN), also known under the trade names Marinol and Syndros, is a generic name for the molecule of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol in the pharmaceutical context. It has indications as an appetite stimulant, antiemetic, and sleep apnea reliever and is approved by the FDA as safe and effective for HIV/AIDS-induced anorexia and chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting only.
The long-term effects of cannabis have been the subject of ongoing debate. Given that the use of cannabis is illegal in most countries, clinical research presents a challenge and there is limited evidence from which to draw conclusions. In 2017, the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine issued a report summarizing much of the published literature on health effects of cannabis, into categories regarded as conclusive, substantial, moderate, limited and of no or insufficient evidence to support an association with a particular outcome.
Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS) is recurrent nausea, vomiting, and cramping abdominal pain that can occur due to prolonged, high-dose cannabis use. These symptoms may be relieved temporarily by taking a hot shower or bath. Complications are related to persistent vomiting and dehydration which may lead to kidney failure and electrolyte problems.
GW Pharmaceuticals Limited is a British pharmaceutics company known for its multiple sclerosis treatment product nabiximols which was the first natural cannabis plant derivative to gain market approval in any country. Another cannabis-based product, Epidiolex, was approved for treatment of epilepsy by the US Food and Drug Administration in 2018. It is a subsidiary of Jazz Pharmaceuticals.
The history of medicinal cannabis goes back to the ancient times. Ancient physicians in many parts of the world mixed cannabis into medicines to treat pain and other ailments. In the 19th century, cannabis was introduced for therapeutic use in Western Medicine. Since then, there have been several advancements in how the drug is administered. Initially, cannabis was reduced to a powder and mixed with wine for administration. In the 1970s, synthetic THC was created to be administered as the drug Marinol in a capsule. However, the main mode of administration for cannabis is smoking because its effects are almost immediate when the smoke is inhaled. Between 1996 and 1999, eight U.S. states supported cannabis prescriptions opposing policies of the federal government. Most people who are prescribed marijuana for medical purposes use it to alleviate severe pain.
David L. Nathan is an American psychiatrist, writer, and founder and past president of Doctors for Cannabis Regulation. Best known for his advocacy of cannabis legalization, he has also published research in the academic and lay press on a range of other topics, including archeology, numismatics, the history of animation and early American football.
Doctors for Drug Policy Reform, or D4DPR is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that serves as a global voice for licensed health professionals and scientists advocating for evidence-based drug policies and best practices that advance public health, reduce stigma, and minimize harm. D4DPR leverage the expertise, compassion, and influence of licensed health professionals to enact changes in drug policy necessary to improve public health, human rights, social justice, and consumer protections. D4DPR, formerly DFCR, was founded in 2015 by David L. Nathan. In 2021, Dr. Bryon Adinoff, an addictionologist, researcher, and editor-in-chief of the American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse succeeded Nathan to become D4DPR's second president.
Medical cannabis research includes any medical research on using cannabis. The earliest systematic studies of physiological effects of cannabis-derived chemical were conducted in the 1920's. The level or research activity in this area remained relatively low and constant until 1966, when a 10-fold increase in publication activity occurred within 10 years. After the adoption of the Convention on Psychotropic Substances in 1971 there was a drop in research publishing, which continued till ca. 1987. Since then, cannabis research has been continuously on the rise. There is no apparent inflection point is 2013, when Uruguay "became the first country in the world to fully regulate its marijuana market, from production to consumption and distribution." Since then a large number of countries enacted policies on medical cannabis research, and there are substantial differences between such policies in different countries.
Cannabis product testing is a form of product testing analyzes the quality of cannabis extracts, edibles, and THC and CBD levels in an emergent consumer market eager to sell adult use products. Analytical chemistry and microbiology laboratories are important entities in consumer protection. These labs not only determine the condition and viability of cannabinoids, water content, heavy metals, pesticides, terpenes, yeast, but also the presence of mold, mycotoxins, and solvents. These laboratories emerged when advocates of cannabis testing raised concerns about potential contaminants.
The International Association for Cannabinoid Medicines (IACM), formerly known as the International Association for Cannabis as a Medicine, is a non-profit scientific society founded in Cologne in 2000 and dedicated to the advancement of knowledge of cannabis and cannabinoid medicines among medical professionals. IACM is one of the few global non-profit medical societies or associations related to cannabis and Cannabinoids, along with the Society of Cannabis Clinicians and the International Cannabinoid Research Society.
References
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- ↑ "Press release: Award Winning Columnist Dr. Dave Hepburn Embarks on Speaking Tour". ACI Information Group. 13 October 2016. Archived from the original on 25 October 2016. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
- ↑ "David Hepburn, MD – Patients Out of Time". patientsoutoftime.org. Archived from the original on 2020-01-26. Retrieved 2018-04-12.
- ↑ "Will doctors be prescribing home grown marijuana? - Lift News". Lift News. 25 February 2016. Archived from the original on 16 June 2018. Retrieved 20 October 2016.
- ↑ "Q&A with B.C. doctor going on speaking tour about medical marijuana". CBC News. September 2, 2015.
- ↑ "Dr. Dave Hepburn". Cannabis Hemp Conference. Retrieved 2018-04-12.
- ↑ "Dr. Dave Hepburn, Author at Leafly". Leafly. Retrieved 2018-04-12.
- ↑ rubenbristian.com. "Dave Hepburn | Bottom Line Conference | Canadian Mental Health Association". www.bottomlineconference.ca. Retrieved 2018-04-12.
- ↑ Canada, Keynote Speakers (2015-10-28). "Dave Hepburn, MD". keynotespeakerscanada.ca. Archived from the original on 2019-02-18. Retrieved 2018-04-12.
