How many times have we heard out there about marijuana, about its dangerousness, many of us think that it is not so, that it does not harm the body, others say yes, but to a lesser extent compared to the normal cigarette or some other substance, but in truth, we know what is really dangerous about this plant, or rather part of the plant? Let's find out.
It is common for people to use the word marijuana or cannabis to refer to this plant, but there are actually some differences between these two terms.
The term cannabis refers to all products that come from the Cannabis Sativa plant, and this plant contains more than 540 chemicals.
On the other hand, the word marijuana refers only to parts of the mentioned plant or to some products that are obtained from it, especially the substance known as tetrahydrocannabinol or THC. This substance is the most dangerous and is the one that causes harmful effects on the mental state of consumers.
Due to the purity of the plants (cannabis), some of them may have a higher or lower concentration of THC. Cannabinoids are a group of substances found in the cannabis plant (more than 100 different types that have been identified so far), but two of them are the most important or best known and are THC and cannabidiol also known as CBD.
THC and CBD act on cannabinoid receptors in our bodies, which are found primarily in the brain and throughout our nervous and immune systems.
THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, is the cannabinoid that occupies the largest volume in a given strain of marijuana. It's what makes us feel high. The chemical compound has the main psychoactive effect on the human body. For us to feel the effects of THC, it must go through a process called decarboxylation, which is achieved by applying heat, smoking, vaping, or cooking cannabis.
CBD, or cannabidiol, is a non-psychoactive cannabinoid that represents the second-highest volume in cannabis (after THC). It doesn't make us feel high and instead serves to relieve things like anxiety, inflammation, and the perception of pain.
It is currently illegal to market CBD by adding it to a food or labeling it as a food supplement.
The FDA has only limited data on the safety of CBD and these data indicate that there are real risks that should be considered before ingesting CBD for any reason. Some CBD products are marketed making unverified medical claims of unknown quality.
The Department of Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved the cannabis plant for medicinal uses but has approved some drugs that contain some specific cannabinoids.
Medications containing cannabinoids may be helpful in treating certain rare forms of epilepsy, nausea, and vomiting associated with cancer chemotherapy, and the loss of appetite and weight loss associated with HIV/AIDS. In addition, some evidence suggests modest benefits of cannabis or cannabinoids for chronic pain and multiple sclerosis symptoms. Cannabis is not useful for glaucoma. Research on cannabis or cannabinoids for other conditions is in its early stages.
Medical cannabis is quickly becoming the best choice for dangerous and addictive prescription painkillers, such as opioids that cause an epidemic of overdose deaths in the United States.
Generally, marijuana's pain-relieving power comes mostly from its psychoactive cannabinoid, THC. However, cannabidiol is also a potent painkiller. In 2015, the most important study was given to discover the pain-relieving effects of CBD. In that study, the researchers compared cannabidiol to morphine.
To his surprise, CBD worked well in combination with morphine and counteracted the risky side effects of the latter. This means that cannabidiol can help treat acute pain conditions, along with more long-term benefits.
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