Health Benefits

General Chronic Pain Relief
Cannabis has been used for millennia as a pain-relieving substance. Evidence shows that cannabinoids prove useful in pain modulation by inhibiting neuronal transmission in pain pathways. The oil has the ability to relieve chronic pain and inflammation, which is why cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy often turn to cannabis oil for relief. It’s also why it can be a part of natural fibromyalgia treatment. It reduces nerve-related (neuropathic) pain as it helps quell the burning pain in the feet and hands caused by diabetes, AIDS, spinal cord injuries, and allows opioid treatment at lower doses.

Reduces Stress and Anxiety
Everyone gets anxious every once in a while, but some people can be debilitated by the anxiety they feel on a daily basis—it can impact their lives significantly. Though cannabis can actually create anxiety if taken in high doses, if using a strain that isolates CBD and taking medicinal cannabis in low doses, it can help to reduce it.

Cannabis oil has the ability to both release pleasure hormones and relax the mind. It reduces stress and allows a calming and peaceful feeling to take over the body. Chemical components of cannabis, called cannabinoids, activate specific receptors found throughout the body to produce pharmacologic effects, particularly in the central nervous system and the immune system.

Alzheimer’s Disease
The active ingredient in cannabis, THC, can prevent a particular enzyme named acetylcholinesterase from accelerating the formation of protein clumps in the brain that can inhibit memory and cognition as well as the formation of Alzheimer’s plaques. In other words THC slows progression of Alzheimer’s Disease or prevent it by blocking the “amyloid plaques” which are what is responsible for killing brain cells.

In fact, cannabis is known to work more effectively for treatment of Alzheimer’s than pharmaceuticals that were specifically designed for the task. It reduces agitation and night time tossing and turning, stimulate weight gain.

Cancer Treatment
The active ingredients in medicinal cannabis have been proven to effectively relieve the pain, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite and weakness that cancer patients feel while going through chemotherapy. Cannabis prevents cancer from spreading as it turns off a gene known as Id-1. The Id-1 gene is where cancer cell can create more “copies and allow it to quickly spread through your body. Even more impressive though is the fact that cannabis has been seen to stop metastasis of aggressive cancer and even kill cancer cells—all the while avoiding the healthy cells.

Epilepsy
It’s a well-known fact that many people who suffer from epileptic seizures do not respond to traditional treatment. However, cannabis can plan a critical role in controlling seizure activity in epilepsy. Many epileptics depend heavily on medicinal marijuana because pharmaceuticals simply do not work for them. It reduces the number of seizures in children and adults with Dravet Syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome, types of epilepsy that are difficult to control with current medications.

Likely the youngest cannabis user is a 5 year old Charlotte Figi. She suffers from a severe nervous disorder, Dravet’s Syndrome and her seizures decreased from 300 per week to just 1 after being given medical cannabis.

Multiple Sclerosis
Another condition that often responds more favourably to medicinal cannabis is muscular sclerosis. Evidence from clinical trials show the positive impact that cannabis has on muscle spasticity, arm and leg pain, and even mood. It controls the debilitating muscle spasms and stiffness, which often interfere with sleep and even walking. Thus reduces pain, spasticity, depression, fatigue, incontinence.

Promotes Eye Health
Research shows that cannabis oil helps to naturally treat macular degeneration and glaucoma. Glaucoma is a disease of the optic nerve that can result in vision loss and blindness. It’s caused by a buildup of fluid in the eye that puts pressure on the optic nerve, retina and lens. The pressure can permanently damage the eye if not treated. Although many factors contribute to the optic nerve damage in glaucoma patients, it has been established that the level of intraocular pressure (known as IOP) definitively is related.

Cannabis can relieve and reduce the intraocular (eye) pressure that causes damage of the optic nerve in the eyes. Effects of cannabis slows the progression of the disease which prevents blindness. There is even evidence that it can reverse deterioration as well. One cautionary fact about cannabis’ ability to lower IOP is that it only works for a short time, so patients would have to use cannabis about every three to four hours.

Protects Skin
Applying cannabis oil to the skin stimulates the shredding of dead skin cells and promotes a fresh and glowing appearance. Cannabinoids are responsible for lipid production, so they can help with regulating conditions such as dry skin or acne — and may be added to your home remedies for acne.

Cell damage formed by oxidation speeds up the aging process and can lead to dark spots, wrinkles and other signs of aging. Because of its high antioxidant properties, cannabis oil helps to fight free radical damage. Also, cannabis inhalation or consumption minimizes feelings of stress, and stress can lead to acne, eczema and rosacea.

Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C affects millions of people each year, and medications for it often lead to severe side effects, such as muscle aches, nausea, extreme fatigue, loss of appetite, and depression. But patients who use cannabis regularly claim it improves the effectiveness of their drug therapy, by subduing the side effects so they can complete the therapy. It also helps the drugs more effectively achieve a sustained virological response, which means that there are no signs left of the virus in their bodies.

Insomnia
A large portion of the adult population suffers from insomnia—whether they can’t fall asleep, they can’t stay asleep, or both. Chronic sleeplessness is often caused by another condition, such as fibromyalgia, depression, anxiety, or chronic pain. Medicinal cannabis induce sleep and/or improve sleep quality. It can put patients to sleep by reducing the pain, pressure, and inflammation that is keeping them awake.

Boosts Heart Health
The antioxidant properties in cannabis oil benefit the heart and prevent a range of cardiovascular conditions, including hypertension, coronary heart disease, stroke, atherosclerosis and heart attacks. Cannabinoids affect blood vessels by causing them to relax and widen. By relaxing blood vessels, cannabis presents a natural way to lower blood pressure and improve circulation.

Alters Appetite
For people who are looking to gain weight, possibly after an illness or injury recovery, cannabis oil is known to increase appetite. The oil also induces hunger and stimulates the digestive system — this is possible because of the hormones that are triggered by cannabis inhalation and consumption.

Arthritis
Cannabis is highly effective at reducing pain and inflammation of arthritis as well as the insomnia that results from it. In regards Rheumatoid Arthritis, use of medical cannabis reduces joint pain and swelling, suppress joint destruction and disease worsening.

Migraines and Headaches
Migraine and headache pain can be debilitating and severely affect sufferers’ quality of life. Cannabis’ inhibitory effect on serotonin type 3 receptors can diminish the onset of migraines and headaches.

Parkinson’s Disease: Reduce the tremors in this nervous system disorder and the stiffness in the arms and legs, as well as psychosis symptoms.

Crohn’s Disease: Ease the need for medication and surgery for patients with this type of inflammatory bowel disease, which often irritates the small intestine.

Lupus: Help reduce pain—especially joint aches—in patients with this autoimmune disorder and prevent the disease from progressing

Gastrointestinal Disorders: Reduce cramping, abdominal pain, acid reflux, intestinal secretion, disease activity.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders: Ease the nightmares and other symptoms of PTSD.

Weight Loss: Drop a few pounds by kicking up metabolism.

Fibromyalgia: Reduce pain and muscle stiffness, improve sleep quality.

HIV/AIDS: Reduce neuropathic pain, anxiety, nausea, appetite and weight loss.

Pruritus: Reduce itching in conditions such as kidney and liver diseases.

Dystonia: Reduce muscle tension and involuntary, painful muscle contractions.