Medical cannabis, or medicinal marijuana, is medical cannabis and certain cannabinoids which are usually prescribed by doctors for their terminally ill patients. It is often advised to seriously consider medical cannabis if a person is terminally ill because it is known to have many properties, the most important among them being that it is not addictive in any way. Medical cannabis can even help treat many different types of cancer and also has been shown to alleviate the side effects of chemotherapy. Also, the fact that it does not cause physical dependence on the patient and also does not have adverse side effects, makes it extremely popular as a medicine in many countries around the world.
Medical cannabis is available to anyone who requests it. The process of getting it varies from state to state in many states, because in some states it is a simple request, while in others it requires a doctor’s prescription. However, most medical cannabis users do not require a prescription in most states, so it is important to make sure that you get this medicine legitimately, from a qualified source such as your doctor or through a licensed marijuana store. As more studies are conducted on the effectiveness of medical cannabis, there is also an increasing concern about the harmful side-effects caused by some of the illegal drugs which are derived from the cannabis plant, and which mimic its properties. It is therefore important that users become aware of these drugs and avoid using them when needed, but also that they know where to access legitimate medical cannabis.
One of the most common side-effects which patients complain about is nausea. Nausea can result from various ailments, including chemotherapy, but is particularly prevalent in the treatment of cancer. Although the cancer patient may receive treatment for nausea, this treatment may cause the patient to suffer from nausea and other symptoms, rendering medical cannabis completely ineffective. Medical cannabis can be used to counteract these side effects of chemotherapy; therefore, if you are experiencing chemotherapy, you should ensure that you get medical cannabis immediately before your chemotherapy is scheduled to begin. If you find that you experience nausea after receiving cancer treatment, you should visit your doctor to find out whether it is simply because of the chemotherapy, or if it has been caused by the cannabis.
Another common complaint made by those who use medical marijuana is insomnia. In many states, it is illegal to use cannabis for this purpose, and therefore many people find that they cannot get a good night’s sleep, due to their reliance on the drug. While insomnia is a common side-effect of medical cannabis, it can be addressed with a few simple lifestyle changes, such as getting more sleep (especially before bed), getting more exercise, and avoiding any substance which will depress you.
There are also many qualifying conditions that medical cannabis may be prescribed to alleviate. Amongst the most common are persistent muscle spasms or seizures which interfere with a person’s quality of life. Other qualifying conditions include glaucoma, arthritis, AIDS, nausea, and more recently, serious depression. As with any medication which is given to treat a qualifying condition, doctors can prescribe other drugs to help alleviate the symptoms of the primary condition. For example, if someone is taking chemotherapy for cancer, they may be prescribed another drug to help them cope with the side effects of the chemotherapy. In this way, medical cannabis proves effective in providing relief for many different ailments, including some which may have nothing to do with the body’s chemistry.
As well as those suffering from serious, life-threatening ailments, recreational users of cannabis are now being treated with a synthetic form of the active ingredient in the cannabis plant, which is called THC. The synthetic THC is about half as potent as the original plant’s THC. This means that the drug is much less likely to have harmful side effects for users, but there are still concerns surrounding its use. Some health experts fear that introducing THC to children could result in them being addicted to the drug. However, many children do consume cannabis daily without any apparent addiction, and it may be this ‘new kid on the block’ syndrome that is responsible for bringing about the increased interest in medical cannabis among young people. In addition, the fact that the chemical THC is present in much greater concentration in cannabis when compared with its derivative, CBD, has led some researchers to conclude that the two chemicals are simply more alike than different.