Medical Cannabis
The use of cannabis as medicine goes back thousands of years. Historical records show its use in a variety of ancient cultures around the world from India and China to Greece and the Netherlands to name a few. Cannabis was used for a variety of purposes including anesthesia, pain relief, sleep aid, treatment of gastrointestinal disorders, wound dressing, and more. Development and use of cannabis based medicines continued well into the the 20th century. In fact use of cannabis as medicine was so well accepted that from 1850–1937 it was listed explicitly in the United States Pharmacopeia, a standard reference for medical professionals.
In the modern era medical cannabis became legal in California in 1996 as a result of the Compassionate Use Act. California pioneered the wave of legal medical cannabis we now see sweeping the United States and other parts of the world. Legalization allowed for use of medical cannabis to treat a variety of health issues including nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy cancer treatments, HIV/AIDS, chronic pain, neurological disorders, and post-traumatic stress disorder among others.
With the passage of time doctors, researchers, and patients have had time to learn more about cannabis medicine and create a whole host of medical cannabis products beyond the flower itself. Currently on the medical market there are high dose edibles, salves and creams, transdermal patches, tinctures, and a variety of extracts available to patients.
Along with the increased availability of medical cannabis products, another emerging trend is interest cannabinoids other than tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) for medicinal purposes. The most well known of which is cannabidiol (CBD). Others such as cannabinol (CBN) and cannabigerol (CBG) have more recently become available in select markets. There are over 100 cannabinoids known to be present in cannabis. Researchers worldwide are now working to investigate the potential medical uses of these cannabinoids individually and in combination in an effort to tackle diseases such as cancer and epilepsy. The field of medical cannabis is growing rapidly as researchers seek to publish their findings which investigates the use of cannabis medicine to address a host of diseased and health issues. Much of this information is available online to the interested patient or consumer.
