Your Guide to the Medical Benefits of Cannabis

You Need to Know About the Endocannabinoid System

In order to know how marijuana might benefit you, you’ll need to know a bit about the endocannabinoid system. Basically, it is a biological network of cell receptors that exist within the body. Endocannabinoids are like the body’s naturally occurring cannabinoids – the chemicals found in marijuana. They exist literally everywhere in the body, right down to our hair follicles. The two main types of cell receptors are the CB1 and CB2 receptors. They perform a variety of different things for the body but for example, they help with sleep, appetite, mood, motor control, pain, memory, and immunities. Clearly, they hold some sway over the body and having access to medical cannabis resources may be able to help you. Here are some of the medical benefits of marijuana that might help you.

Pain Relief

Chronic pain relief is a problem for so many people around the world. For a long time now opioids have been used in the treatment of pain for various conditions while in hospital. Its analgesic properties have helped make it the gold standard. But cannabis also functions as an analgesic. In a study done at Harvard to examine the effectiveness of medical marijuana in treating pain, they found that it reduced patients’ symptoms significantly.

This is good news because the danger of opioids is much larger. It is well established how addictive opioids can be. In this regard, cannabis is much safer. Its track record of addiction is nothing like the levels of opiate addiction. If medical marijuana becomes the go-to source for pain relief, this may be the best for everyone.

Protects Against UV Rays

Although nowadays having a great tan is something people associate with a high-class of living that doesn’t take away from the hard truth that those who spend more time basking in the sun’s golden rays are actually exposing themselves to harmful UV rays.

These rays can prove incredibly damaging to our bodies. From the purely superficial exterior problems it can cause, like wrinkles. And also, the much more serious issues like skin cancer. However, the antioxidant properties found in cannabis may help to protect our delicate skin against such damage caused by harmful UV rays. CBD acts like the most natural skin care product in the world and can possibly prevent benefits to our bodies in later life.

Inflammation

Probably one of the best known effects of cannabis is its anti-inflammatory properties. In recent years athletes have been using CBD for its keen ability to decrease inflammation in damaged joints. MMA stars, in particular, have turned to the healing power of CBD oils following intense and strenuous athletic feats. After a particularly contentious match-up, UFC star Nate Diaz was seen vaping CBD at the press conference claiming it helped him regroup faster.

Clearly, these CBD enriched oils fight pain and inflammation that occurs in many of the world’s best. High levels of stress on joints and muscles can cause painful inflammation and CBD combats this. Even if we’re not athletic gifted we can still suffer from inflammation in its everyday forms. Joint inflammation also occurs because of chronic diseases like arthritis. In several studies, CBD proved effective in treating this.

Also, skin diseases that produce very intense inflammation such as rosacea and psoriasis may be treated successfully by using CBD products. CBD also interacts with our serotonin levels, improving our mood, which could be beneficial for those suffering from potentially embarrassing skin conditions.

Anti-Aging

It might not totally be the fountain of youth we’ve all been searching for but cannabis may be able to help us with certain problems we’re likely to face in later life. It may be able to lessen these effects. Especially when it comes to brain function. As people grow older our memories and brain functions, naturally, will deteriorate. The degree to which this happens varies from person to person. Does it always have to be like that? At the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the University of Bonn, researchers have found a reason to believe that that may not also be the case.

These scientists gave mice across a wide age spectrum small doses of THC. After this, they were given tests for their learning capacities and memories. What the researchers discovered was mind-blowing. The mice who were given placebos displayed normal age-dependent brain function while those given the THC had cognitive skills just as good as the control group who were two months old. It’s easy to be dismissive but this shows that using a desktop vaporizer or a portable vaporizer could have serious benefits for your mind’s longevity.

Heart Disease

Despite the fact that human trials are largely restricted due to government restrictions there is still a lot that we do know about THC. For example, we know that small amounts of tetrahydrocannabinol help relax and widen blood vessels. This is a process known as vasorelaxation or vasodilation. It’s possible to view this effect in action just by looking at the reddened eyes of someone who’s been smoking cannabis. The stereotypical red-eyes are actually the process of vasodilation in action.

For anyone suffering from blocked arteries, this might be just the thing they need to help. And for the many people around the world with a family history of heart troubles, this could be the thing to look into. The potential benefits from such treatment are literally life-changing.

The Potential is Limitless

Clearly there is a lot of scope for marijuana to improve our lives in the future. The endocannabinoid system is only just mined for potential healing factors and more discoveries are being made all the time. With more clinical trials in future and more freely available CBD and THC products there may be could be many things we simply don’t know. It’s exciting to imagine we may be on the cusp of one of the best medical innovations ever.