Cannabis or more commonly known as marijuana, weed, or hemp plant has been known to be illegal for a long time. But now, with time, the re-evaluation of the plant for medicinal purposes, ie. health benefits, is being carried out. While the benefits are fairly well known now, what about the risk? Are there any risks of Cannabis?
Recently this year, the cannabis industry got a green signal to manufacture medicinal products. These mainly include topical solutions and gels. The issue of legalization still persists in some states of the United States.
Demand and Risk
Yet, the demand for CBD or Cannabidiol-based products has increased, and many people have begun to wonder what possible health benefits we can get from this product. Some have even begun to grow their own cannabis with a lot of beginner cannabis growers using using weed seeds farmerslabseeds.
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Other people claim cannabis is harmful and want to find the risks associated with its use. In this article, we will discuss the health benefits and possible risks associated with cannabis use. Give this guide a read and determine whether you think cannabis can improve your health or the risks outweigh the advantages.
Health Benefits of Cannabis
The cannabis industry uses two types of cannabis strains. These are Cannabis indica and Cannabis sativa. We have to understand that the cannabis plant produces certain chemicals that can have different effects on the body.
Whenever we consider a chemical substance or drug, we need to find out what it’s actually composed of. This way it’s easier to determine what actions it’s going to have on the body. The cannabis plant produces Cannabinoids. This chemical can be further classified into Cannabidiol (CBD) and Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).
CBDs are known to be non-psychoactive agents. This means that they do not produce hypnotic or anxiolytic effects. As a result, it has nothing to do with our Central Nervous System (CNS), which includes the brain and reflex arcs. The government has regulated the amount of CBD that is allowed to be added to the product. If the dosage is high enough it may produce some adverse effects that we’ll discuss later.
Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) can produce harmful effects on the brain and is known to cause depression and anxiety for some people.
There has been a lot of research going on to find out how we can benefit from the plant species. Some possible health benefits of the cannabis plant are given below:
1. Chronic And Acute Pain Management
Some researchers have found out that cannabis has anti-inflammatory effects and analgesic effects. Because of this it’s a good agent for reducing pain.
2. Depression
Marijuana rich in CBD content is a known mood-booster. It produces a euphoric effect and helps with depression.
3. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
Some results show that the regulated use of cannabis can help patients suffering from mental disorders such as PTSD.
4. Epilepsy
Some strains of cannabis are known to be antispasmodic agents. This means that these drugs will help with twitching or paralysis of the muscles. It is an FDA-approved agent and is available commercially as Epidiolex.
5. Insomnia
Marijuana also helps with sleeping disorders such as insomnia. It has a relaxing effect on the body and may help the patient to sleep well.
Possible Risks of Cannabis
Possible Risks of CannabisWhen a drug is approved for medicinal use its side effects are always considered before releasing it for public use. For example, antibiotics are well-known drugs, they are used to treat a lot of diseases. They also have a lot of side effects and are known to be harmful.
The controversy with cannabis is that for a long time its use has been considered taboo among many communities. We know that too much dependency on a drug or excessive intake of anything can be harmful. This is why possible risks are always an issue with people.
We’re going to discuss some risk factors associated with the use of weed. These include:
1. Addiction
The major risk of cannabis use is addiction. The problem with medicinal drugs is that if we keep taking them for a long time for any chronic treatment, our body becomes tolerant of their action. And we need to take higher and higher doses to produce the same beneficial effect. This leads to addiction. Moreover, taking a dose higher than average will lead to many side effects.
2. Hallucinogenic Effects
The use of cannabis might induce hallucinations. It may impair cognitive and motor functions, which may lead to serious harm to yourself or even others.
3. Depression
Cannabis products containing a high amount of THC can result in depression, anxiety and even promote aggressive behavior.
4. Negative Systemic Effects
The use of marijuana may lead to increased blood pressure, hyperventilation, hyperactivity, and an increase in heart rate. But these effects are rarely encountered with CBD products. Care should be taken to regulate the dosage of the drugs.
Conclusion
Cannabis use has been banned for a long time. But as more and more research is being carried out to find out the use of the plant for medicinal purposes, governments have been forced to reconsider the legalization of controversial substances.
The plant surely has some beneficial health effects and is used for the treatment of:
- Pain management
- PTSD
- Depression (CBD rich)
- Epilepsy
- Insomnia
It also has some possible risks such as:
- Addiction
- Hallucinogenic Effects
- Cause Depression (THC rich)
- Produce Negative Systemic Effects
