No matter whether you’re a medical marijuana supporter or just a regular cannabis user, it’s critical to have a thorough understanding of the drug’s effects. For your benefit and the benefit of others, here are five things you should know about the miracle plant:
- Cannabis Contains Two FDA-Approved Active Ingredients
An FDA-approved medicine for treating nausea associated with chemotherapy and AIDS-related anorexia, dronabinol is the pharmacological name given to Delta 9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). A synthetic form of the most prevalent cannabinoid has been approved, although it is nearly identical to the cannabinoid found naturally by the CBD. It’s important to note that while federal law still classifies the cannabis plant itself as a dangerous drug, the world’s leading drug safety agency allows the use of its two primary components in other forms.
- No one has ever died from overdosing on marijuana
According to research, no one has ever died after taking too much cannabis. When US Judge Francis Young presided over DEA hearings on Medical Cannabis in 1989, “It would take approximately 1500 pounds of cannabis within 15 minutes.” In 2018, approximately 47,000 people died from opioid overdoses, with prescription opioids accounting for 32% of those deaths. More than 95,000 people in the United States die each day because of excessive alcohol use, or 261 deaths, as per the CDC.
- After trying marijuana, most people don’t utilize illicit substances
This misconception, better classed as propaganda, mixes correlation with causation. It’s only natural that some people who first experimented with marijuana wind up doing narcotics like crack cocaine, crystal meth, or heroin because marijuana is the most frequently used and easily accessible substance of its kind.
- Cannabis Comes In Many Formulations
There’s more to it than meets the eye. At least 146 cannabinoids, such as CBD, have been identified among the 500 active chemical ingredients. Everything from the growth circumstances to the way the cannabis flowers are stored can impact the chemical profile (think of a specific strain). You also have to consider that there are thousands of distinct cannabis chemovars. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to talk about marijuana consistently.
- Type 1: Cannabis strains with a high THC content but a low CBD content
- Type 2: Has a more evenly distributed ratio of THC and CBD, which is sometimes referred to as a 1:1 ratio.
- Type 3: CBD predominates, while THC levels are low.
Each of these has therapeutic value, but some are better than others for specific patients and conditions, and they all have different effects on the body.
- A Whole System In The Human Body Is Interactive With Cannabis
The endocannabinoid system, present in all vertebrates, is found in cells throughout the human body, including the brain and spinal cord. Brain, liver, skin, and eyes are a few of the many places where they can be found.
Pain perception, anxiety, memory and learning, appetite, temperature, reproductive function, and even heart rate and blood pressure are all regulated and balanced by the endocannabinoid system. There’s a good reason it’s called “Cannabis.”
Endocannabinoid system-activating cannabinoid molecules are produced by both our bodies and cannabis plants. Plant-based cannabinoids were discovered by scientists decades before they found that the body also makes them.
The endocannabinoid system is assumed to be the reason why cannabis is capable of treating so many symptoms and ailments. It’s as if we were made for each other; our bodies already have the systems and understanding to use cannabis effectively.
The endocannabinoid system and plant-based cannabinoids, in particular, are still in their infancy when it comes to medical applications. Being so new, medical schools have only just begun to teach it. We know for sure that there is a lot of room for growth and that we’re just getting started.