“Treatment can improve appetite, ease chronic pain, and more, say TAU researchers. Though controversial, medical cannabis has been gaining ground as a valid therapy, offering relief to suffers of diseases such as cancer, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, ALS and more. The substance is known to soothe severe pain, increase the appetite, and ease insomnia where other common medications fail.”
“Advocates are fighting to legalize marijuana. The University of Mississippi has the only legally grown marijuana crop in the nation.Faculty members and student researchers have now developed a new patch that could potentially provide help to patients who need it.
The patch developed at Ole Miss could help patients overcome problems associated with taking the drug in pill form. The patch is placed above the gum line.
“In addition to pain, it will include things like reducing intraocular pressure and therefore would be good for glaucoma. [It] will be good for alleviating the nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy; it would also be good for appetite stimulation for patients suffering from the syndrome, anti-inflammatory activity, anti-anxiety,” explains Dr. ElSohly.”
More: http://www.myfoxal.com/story/21116615/pot-patch-offers-medicinal-marijuana-treatment-at-ole-miss
“(WMC-TV) – Ole Miss is home to the only legally grown marijuana crop in the nation and a new development there is creating quite a buzz. Faculty and student researchers say they created a new pain reliever in the form of a patch.
Dr. Mahmoud Elsohly is a faculty member at the School of Pharmacy at Ole Miss. He and his team have been working inside their marijuana research lab for nearly seven years to find alternative uses for THC, which is the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana.
“The plant itself has a great potential for good medicine coming out of the Cannabis plant…”
More: http://www.14news.com/story/21217891/a-look-ahead-ole-miss-cooks-up-marijuana-pain-patch
Research project head Prof. Ruth Djaldetti, a senior physician in the neurology department and head of the movement disorders clinic, said that the results support the treatment of Parkinson’s patients with medical marijuana.
Djaldetti encourages more research into the use of cannabis for pain relief.
There are some 20,000 people with Parkinson’s in Israel, and about 50 percent to 80% of them suffer from this previously unexplained and untreated pain. Djaldetti expects that in the future, gene mapping will make it possible to suit personalized medication to these patients.”
“For years, cancer patients have used pot to combat the side effects of chemotherapy. But evidence has grown, both clinical and anecdotal, that cannabis has the potential to impede the spread of cancer itself.
Now, researchers in Japan are reporting that CBDA keeps breast cancer cells from spreading.
CBD, the miracle of component of cannabis that has been shown to have profound efficacy as a pain reliever, is obtained from its parent molecule, cannabidiolic acid or CBDA.
Until now, investigators have wondered whether CBDA is biologically active. But the study reports: “CBDA is an inhibitor of highly aggressive human breast cancer cell migration.””-
by Dan Skye
http://hightimes.com/news/dskye/7912
More: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378427412012854
“Cannabis has been used recreationally and for medicinal purposes for centuries, yet its 60 plus active components are only partly understood. Now scientists have discovered how a compound in cannabis can help cells to function in our bodies, and aid recovery after a damaging event.
In a paper published in the Journal of Neuroscience, the researchers report on their studies into cannabidiol – a naturally occurring molecule found in cannabis.
Also known as CBD, it is not the constituent that gives the high – that compound is called tetrahydrocannabinol or THC – and so may be more acceptable as a drug treatment.
Both compounds are currently used in a pharmaceutical medicine to help patients relieve pain and other symptoms of Multiple Sclerosis.
Now researchers have discovered how CBD actually works within brain cells.
By interacting with mitochondria – which are the power generators of all cells – it can help maintain normal levels of calcium allowing cells to function properly and providing a greater resistance to damage.
Disturbance of calcium levels has long been associated with a number of brain disorders. So the finding could have implications for the development of new treatments for disorders related to malfunctioning mitochondria.
Dr Bettina Platt, from the University’s School of Medical Sciences, said: “Scientists have known for a long time that cannabidiol can help with pain relief but we never really knew how it worked.
“However we have discovered what it actually does at the cellular level.
“We are hoping that our findings can instruct the development of cannabidiol based treatments for disorders related to mitochondrial dysfunction such as Parkinson’s disease or Huntington’s disease.”
Researchers analyzed the data to find out what substances were being tried by students. They checked for use of marijuana, cocaine, heroin, LSD, amphetamines, tranquilizers and other narcotics.
Alcohol was the first substance to be tried by students, the results showed.
“By recognizing the important predictive role of alcohol and delaying initiation of alcohol use, school officials and public health leaders can positively impact the progression of substance use. I am confident in our findings and the clear implications they have for school-based prevention programs. By delaying and/or preventing the use of alcohol, these programs can indirectly reduce the rate of use of other substances,” Adam Barry, an assistant professor and researcher in the College of Health and Human Performance at the University of Florida.
“These findings add further credence to the literature identifying alcohol as the gateway drug to other substance use,” Barry said.”
Read more: http://www.medicaldaily.com/articles/10771/20120711/alcohol-addiction-marijuana-drugs.htm
“The one-armed man loitered in the waiting room for much of the morning, flipping through magazines with impressive dexterity, quietly waiting for word that the doctor would see him. Now.
William Courtney, MD, offered the chair to the right of the desk, the one occupied during regular office hours by a steady stream of patients seeking a doctor’s recommendation for marijuana. In California, such a recommendation means an adult may grow, buy and smoke marijuana, all while remaining safely within the confines of state law.
The singular peculiarity of Courtney’s “pot doc” practice here in Northern California is what he recommends: Don’t smoke the stuff, he tells patients. Eat it.”
Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/31/AR2010053103231.html
“If you find yourself in the doctors chair at the office of Dr. William Courtney, Willits, California you will be advised; we shouldn’t be smoking our marijuana, we should be eating it! After I read the story in the Washington Post, “Form of medical marijuana won’t get you high but is creating quite a buzz” written by Karl Vick, I decided to look into it more.
CBD (Cannabidiol), one of the main constituents of the cannabis plant has been proven medically to relieve convulsion, inflammation, anxiety and nausea, as well as inhibit cancer cell growth. Recent studies have shown it to be an effective atypical anti-psychotic in treating schizophrenia. CBD also interferes with the amount of THC your brain processes, balancing the psychotropic effect of marijuana.”
Read more: http://berkeleypatientscare.com/2010/09/18/juicing-raw-cannabis-for-greater-health/
Pressed vegetable juices are all the rage in America right now, so it’s no surprise that someone would eventually look into the benefits of juicing cannabis as well. In fact, some people have even suggested that cannabis should be considered and classified as a vegetable.
Vegetables are usually an herbaceous plant grown for an edible part, usually eaten as part of a meal. This typically refers to the leaf, stem, flower, or root of a plant. In 1967, the meaning of “vegetable,” was specified to mean, “Plant cultivated for food, edible herb or root.” Some vegetables may be eaten raw, and others must be cooked in order to be edible. When certain fruits and vegetables are heated, they lose tons of beneficial enzymes and nutrients. Cannabis is no different.
Cannabis preparation techniques are based on what benefits you seek from the plant. By juicing the cannabis, you receive most of the medical benefits of the plant without the, “high”. Cannabis in its raw form is not psychoactive in any way. In fact the psychoactive effects of cannabis is purely a human aspect of the plant that, “has nothing to do with the 34 million years of evolution the plant has,” according to Dr. William L. Courtney. Courtney is a dietary raw cannabis specialist, and a strong believer in the plants healing powers.”
Read more: http://www.medicaljane.com/cannabis-the-foundation-of-health/