Marijuana Rated Most Effective for Treating Fibromyalgia

Posted on May 3, 2014 by David

marijuana graph

“Medical marijuana is far more effective at treating symptoms of fibromyalgia than any of the three prescription drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat the disorder.

That is one of the surprise findings in an online survey of over 1,300 fibromyalgia patients conducted by the National Pain Foundation and National Pain Report.”

Cymbalta graph

Lyrica graph

Savella graph .”

“The FDA has approved only three drugs – Cymbalta, Lyrica and Savella — for the treatment of fibromyalgia.”

http://americannewsreport.com/nationalpainreport/marijuana-rated-most-effective-for-treating-fibromyalgia-8823638.html

http://www.thctotalhealthcare.com/category/fibromyalgia/

Miracle Drug: Medical Marijuana Cures Child of Terminal Epilepsy

Posted on May 1, 2014 by David

Mia Wilkinson

“Only until recently has medical marijuana received its deserved accolades by the mainstream media as a miracle drug; however, many in the medical industry are still leaving pot on the back-burner….until NOW.

A Canadian mother named Sarah Wilkinson has tangible claims about how cannabis has saved her disabled and once terminally ill daughter’s life.”

During an interview with the Toronto Sun, Wilkinson said “I assumed people who wanted it just wanted to get high” prior to her daughter’s marijuana use. However, once administering marijuana to her daughter with no other options from the pharmaceutical industry, Mia’s seizures went from 100 a day to 8 at most, changing her stance about the drug overnight. Results upon using the herb were immediate. Mia’s seizures ended within 24 hours of using the herb and now the Wilkinson’s don’t hesitate to call the drug a miracle.”

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2014/05/prweb11808330.htm

“Medical marijuana gives epileptic child new lease on life” http://www.torontosun.com/2014/04/26/medical-marijuana-gives-epileptic-child-new-lease-on-life

“Medical Marijuana Helps Epileptic Child Suffering 100 Seizures a Day” http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/medical-marijuana-helps-epileptic-child-suffering-100-seizures-day-1446463

“Marijuana Miracle: Epileptic Child Who Suffered 100 Seizures Daily ‘Gets Cured’ After Using the Herb” http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/549768/20140428/marijuana-miracle-health-benefits-epilepsy-child-seizure.htm#.U2JQLehX-uY

http://www.thctotalhealthcare.com/category/epilepsy-2/

The draft genome and transcriptome of Cannabis sativa

Posted on March 17, 2014 by David

“Cannabis sativa has been cultivated throughout human history as a source of fiber, oil and food, and for its medicinal and intoxicating properties.

The availability of the Cannabis sativa genome enables the study of a multifunctional plant that occupies a unique role in human culture. Its availability will aid the development of therapeutic marijuana strains with tailored cannabinoid profiles and provide a basis for the breeding of hemp with improved agronomic characteristics.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3359589/

Weed Could Block H.I.V.’s Spread. No, Seriously.

Posted on March 1, 2014 by David

“But the U.S. government won’t let scientists try out this promising treatment on humans… proving that an illegal drug can stop a deadly disease in humans—without testing it on them—is impossible…

THC is one of 500 active ingredients in marijuana. And marijuana, despite many studies proving its medical value, is sill classified by the government as a Schedule 1 Substance.

In the face of mounting evidence that it is beneficial in treating diseases… it remains a controlled substance.

During HIV infection, one of the earliest effects is that the virus spreads rapidly throughout the body and kills a significant part of cells in the gut and intestine. This activity damages the gut in a way that allows the HIV to leak through the cell wall of the intestines and into the bloodstream.

When THC is introduced into this environment, it activates the CB2 receptors in the intestines to build new, healthy bacterial cells that block the virus from leaking through the cell walls. In other words, the body works hard to keep bad stuff in the intestines and the good stuff out.

Put another way: HIV kills the cells that protect the walls— THC brings them back. Reducing the amount of the virus in the lower intestines could then help keep uninfected people uninfected.”

More: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/02/15/weed-can-block-h-i-v-s-spread-no-seriously.html

Potential Oil Yield, Fatty Acid Composition, and Oxidation Stability of the Hempseed Oil from Four Cannabis sativa L. Cultivars.

Posted on February 21, 2014 by David

“The cultivation of four industrial hemp cultivars (Felina 32, Chamaeleon, Uso31, and Finola) was investigated for oil production in the north-east of Italy along two years. The oils of all cultivars resulted in rich amount of linoleic acid (ω-6) and α-linolenic acid (ω-3). Felina 32 and Chamaeleon oils exhibited the highest amount of linoleic acid (59%) and α-linolenic acid (18%). Finola and Uso31 oils resulted in the richest of γ-linolenic acid (5-6%). All hempseed oils presented high oxidation stability and an acceptable initial quality. It is suggested that these oils can be used to produce EFA dietary supplements high in ω-6 and ω-3 of vegetal origin.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24552275

Effects of Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) Seed Oil Press-Cake and Decaffeinated Green Tea Leaves (Camellia sinensis) on Functional Characteristics of Gluten-Free Crackers.

Posted on February 18, 2014 by David

“A mixture, simplex centroid, 2 components experimental design was used to evaluate the addition of hemp seed oil press-cake and decaffeinated green tea leaves, as functional ingredients to assess nutritional characteristics and antioxidant properties of gluten-free crackers.

All samples with added hemp flour had much better nutritional qualities than the brown rice flour crackers in terms of higher protein, crude fibers, minerals, and essential fatty acids content. Likewise, all samples with added decaffeinated green tea leaves had much better antioxidant properties than crackers with no added green tea leaves. All crackers with added hemp flour had a significantly increased fiber content (39% to 249%) and decreased carbohydrate content (8.4% to 42.3%), compared to the brown rice flour crackers.

All samples had antioxidant properties, even without the addition of green tea leaves.

Optimization of the responses was conducted based on the maximized values for protein, fibers, omega-3 fatty acids content, as well as for the antioxidant activity and overall score. The suggested values for the addition of the hemp oil press-cake was 20% (total flour weight) with 4 g of decaffeinated green tea leaves that would provide protein content of 14.1 g/100 g; fibers content of 8.4 g/100 g; omega-3 fatty acids content of 3.2 g/100 g; antioxidant activity measured via 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl value of 30.3 μmol TE/g d.w.; and an overall score of 8.9.

This formulation has demonstrated potential application in the baking industry and marketing of these gluten-free crackers as a value-added functional product.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24527987

Targeted mutation of Δ12 and Δ15 desaturase genes in hemp produce major alterations in seed fatty acid composition including a high oleic hemp oil.

Posted on February 12, 2014 by David

“We used expressed sequence tag library and whole genome sequence mining to identify a suite of putative desaturase genes representing the four main activities required for production of polyunsaturated fatty acids in hemp seed oil. Phylogenetic-based classification and developing seed transcriptome analysis informed selection for further analysis of one of seven Δ12 desaturases and one of three Δ15 desaturases that we designate CSFAD2A and CSFAD3A, respectively. Heterologous expression of corresponding cDNAs in Saccharomyces cerevisiae showed CSFAD2A to have Δx+3 activity, while CSFAD3A activity was exclusively at the Δ15 position. TILLING of an ethyl methane sulphonate mutagenized population identified multiple alleles including non-sense mutations in both genes and fatty acid composition of seed oil confirmed these to be the major Δ12 and Δ15 desaturases in developing hemp seed. Following four backcrosses and sibling crosses to achieve homozygosity, csfad2a-1 was grown in the field and found to produce a 70 molar per cent high oleic acid (18:1Δ9 ) oil at yields similar to wild type. Cold-pressed high oleic oil produced fewer volatiles and had a sevenfold increase in shelf life compared to wild type. Two low abundance octadecadienoic acids, 18:2Δ6,9 and 18:2Δ9,15 , were identified in the high oleic oil, and their presence suggests remaining endogenous desaturase activities utilize the increased levels of oleic acid as substrate. Consistent with this, CSFAD3A produces 18:2Δ9,15 from endogenous 18:1Δ9 when expressed in S. cerevisiae. This work lays the foundation for the development of additional novel oil varieties in this multipurpose low input crop.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24506492

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pbi.12167/full

“Oil composition boost makes hemp a cooking contender. Scientists report the development of hemp plants with a dramatically increased content of oleic acid. The new oil profile results in an attractive cooking oil that is similar to olive oil in terms of fatty acid content, having a much longer shelf life, as well as greater heat tolerance and potentially more industrial applications.” http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/02/140210083104.htm

The isolation and identification of two compounds with predominant radical scavenging activity in hempseed (seed of Cannabis sativa L.).

Posted on January 22, 2014 by David

“Forty samples were extracted from defatted kernels and hulls of two varieties of hempseed (Bama and Yunma No. 1)…

Two compounds, with predominant antiradical activity, were isolated…

N-trans-caffeoyltyramine and cannabisin B….

The two compounds exhibited significant high DPPH() scavenging activity and protective effect against in vitro oxidation of human low-density lipoprotein compared with extracts from flaxseed, grape seed, and soybean.

This suggests that hempseed hull extract is a potential source of natural antioxidants, which could be added to dietary supplements to help prevent oxidative stress.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23107724

Hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) seed oil: Analytical and phytochemical characterization of unsaponifiable fraction.

Posted on January 16, 2014 by David

“Non-drug varieties of Cannabis sativa L., collectively known as “hemp”, have been an important source of food, fiber and medicince for thousands of years. The ever-increasing demand for vegetables oils has made it essential to characterize additional vegetable oil through innovative uses of its components…

This study is an important contribution for Cannabis sativa L. valorization as a source of bioactive compounds contributing to research novel applications for hemp seed oil in the food, pharmaceutical, cosmetic and other non-food industries.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24422510

Erythrocyte membrane Fatty acids in multiple sclerosis patients and hot-nature dietary intervention with co-supplemented hemp-seed and evening-primrose oils.

Posted on December 8, 2013 by David

“The risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS) is associated with increased dietary intake of saturated fatty acids. For many years it has been suspected that this disease might be associated with an imbalance between unsaturated and saturated fatty acids.

We determined erythrocyte membrane fatty acids levels in Hot nature dietary intervention with co-supplemented hemp seed and evening primrose oils in multiple sclerosis patients…

We concluded that Hot-nature dietary intervention with co-supplemented hemp seed and evening primrose oils caused an increase PUFAs in MS patients and improvement in the erythrocyte membrane fatty acids composition. This could be an indication of restored plasma stores, and a reflection of disease severity reduction.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24311880