Cannabis use and the support of cannabis use continues to grow. Most recently, Canada decided to legalize cannabis nationally, with the law going into effect on Canada Day, July 1st, 2018. In the United States, 32 states have legalized marijuana for medical use, with only a handful of states keeping the drug illegal. Proponents of legalization claim that the drug has many medical benefits for a variety of conditions. From pain relief, to relief for anxiety and PTSD, to relief for those suffering from seizures and irritable bowel syndrome, people are saying that medical cannabis is working for them.
However, some people, especially those in the medical and scientific community remain skeptical. The federal government still classifies cannabis as having no medical benefit whatsoever. Some recent studies, however, say differently.
Two studies recently published in the journals Frontiers in Pharmacology and Medicine respectively, point to the fact patients with chronic pain and insomnia saw “statistically and clinically therapeutic benefits” when they used medical cannabis.
Releaf App
The press release citing the studies came from the University of New Mexico, where researchers studied data obtained through the Releaf App.
The Releaf App, which was developed by several of the authors of the study, as almost 100,000 entries of user-entered on the consumption and effect of cannabis use in the United States. The app is designed to allow the users and those gathering the data how marijuana use affects their symptoms, any side effects, as well as the type of marijuana, dosage, and consumption methods that work best.
The study that was published in Frontiers of Pharmacology reported that cannabis users suffering from 27 different health conditions which had symptoms ranging from seizures to depression reported a lessening of their symptoms. The amount that the symptoms were reduced were rated on a scale from zero to ten points. A mean reduction in symptoms from 2.8 to 4.6 points on that scale was reported after consuming cannabis is various forms, including topicals and vaporizing concentrates.
In the second study, reported in the journal Medicine, users rated their reduction of insomnia symptoms as an average of 4.5 points on the same scale of ten.
Overall, 94% of cannabis users reported that the intensity of their symptoms was lessened after the consumption of the drug.
Pain relief
For those looking for chronic pain relief, a review study published in the American Journal of Surgery had two researchers confirm the impact of cannabis use on surgery patients. The researchers found that the active cannabinoids found in the cannabis plant reduced intestinal motility, gastric acid secretion, and nausea.
The two researchers also confirmed that cannabis can help to control pain, reduce inflammation, and increase appetite.
Addiction
For those looking to see if cannabis use can help to treat other addictions, a new study may provide some answers. Preliminary findings in a study indicate that cannabidiol, also known as CBD, could effectively combat an addiction to methamphetamine.
The study found that extremely high doses of CBD (20 mg/kg to 80 mg/kg) in laboratory rats reduced the motivation to consume methamphetamine in rats that had been trained to self-administer the stimulant. These doses are higher than most people consume daily, which is 12mg.
The next step would be to see if CBD has any benefit to meth-addicted humans.
When it comes to the ways of administering cannabis, patients have a variety of ways in which to choose. Some patients choose to smoke the dry herb via pipes or joints. Others choose what is argued to be a healthier method, vaporization. Patients can vaporize dry herb with a portable vaporizer or use a vape pen to consume concentrate oils or waxes. Other popular administration methods are topicals, edibles, and tinctures.
It should be noted that as methods of consumption, the patients who utilized the Releaf App to report cannabis use and reduction of symptoms reported that vaporization gave them more relief and fewer side effects.
Hopefully, as marijuana becomes more acceptable, restrictions that prevent the thorough study of this plant as a medicine will relax. Only then will medical doctors and scientists be able to fully explore the medical properties of this all-natural medicine.

 
Author
Michael is a marketing and creative content specialist at GotVape.com with a primary focus on customer satisfaction. Technology and fitness combined with healthy lifestyle obsession are his main talking points