How Cannabis Can Be Effective Both To Relieve Pain And Insomnia
“Medical” 03.07.2019
https://www.cannabis-mag.com/2019/07/03/new-study-to-relieve-pain-and-insomnia/
A new study demonstrates how cannabis
could be an effective therapeutic option for
pain relief and insomnia, for those seeking to
avoid prescription and over the counter
medications for pain and sleep including
opioids.
Patients under medical cannabis regularly
report using cannabis as a prescription drug
substitute .
A survey was conducted in two stores in
Colorado, United States. Between August
2016 and October 2016, store staff asked
customers if they wanted to participate and if
so, provided an electronic link for the survey.
The study was approved by the Institutional
Review Committee of the Albert Einstein
College of Medicine.
The study, published in the Journal of
Psychoactive Drugs, interviewed 1000
people, consuming lawful cannabis.
Among the participants, 65% of people used
painkillers and 80% of all participants found
it extremely helpful.
This allowed 82% of all participants to reduce
or stop taking painkillers and 88% to stop
taking opioids.
The study suggests that cannabis could
reduce the consumption of opioids.
However, the researchers point out that more
needs to be done to understand potential
therapeutic benefits.
"About 20% of American adults suffer from
chronic pain and one in three adults do not
sleep enough", Explain Dr. Gwen Wurm,
Assistant Professor of Clinical Paediatrics at
Miami Miller University School of Medicine.
Traditional over-the-counter medications and
painkillers may help, but they can have
serious side effects.
Opioids depress the respiratory system, which
means that overdoses can be fatal.
This study shows how cannabis could be
effective for both pain relief and insomnia.
Health professionals are interested in
alternatives to prescription painkillers
(eg, opioids) and sleeping pills (for example,
benzodiazepines ) commonly used because of
concerns about drug-related side effects, such
as injury, misuse, eating disorders, and
overdose.
People develop opioid tolerance, which
means that they need higher doses to achieve
the same effect.
This means that patients with chronic pain
often increase their dose of opioid medication
over time, increasing their risk of overdose. "
Although less common, sleeping pills can be
addictive and cause dizziness the next day,
disrupting people's work and social life.
As a result, some people turn to cannabis to
relieve their symptoms.
"In states where consumption is legal, our
research indicates that many people bypass
the medical cannabis route (which requires
registration with the state) and instead opt for
the confidentiality of a legal clinic," says
Wurm.
Although the survey was conducted with
clients wishing to participate, which means
that the results may not reflect the entire
population of clinic clients, other national
survey data and data from of medical clinic
patients also demonstrate that people who use
cannabis to treat their symptoms are stop
taking medication prescription.
The study adds weight to the theory that
expanding access to medical cannabis could
reduce the consumption of prescription
painkillers, which would allow more people
to manage and treat their pain without use of
prescription opioid medications that have
dangerous side effects.