Cannabis benefits

Still in the dark concerning the medical benefits of cannabis (also known as ganja), well, here's a story of how its helped a little tot regain his life. After "orthodox" treatment with regular prescriptions and treatments showed to be a waste of money, (and time), pot helped.

It is time society removes the tarnished image of marijuana as an evil-drug and start viewing it for what it really is, a harmless, natural herb that has more uses than harm (none in fact, other than the law governing it). Even its non-medical use, as a recreational drug has benefits - it helps blokes relax, and its darn economical. Just two to three hits and your're all set to kick-back, get stoned, and watch TV all evening, instead of going out spending money at the pub, and endanger your life trying to find your way home after the evening of dwinking! Your senses become more profound and you start to appreciate sounds and sights more vividly. Comedy becomes funnier, music and movies becomes more enthralling. Food tastes better!! Yes, you get the munchies, and start to eat more - gotta watch it though, don't overdo it! Toke on!!!

Cheers!


http://ottawacitizen.com/news/local...nnabis-gave-little-liam-age-eight-a-life-back

EGAN: How medical cannabis gave little Liam, age eight, a life back

Kelly Egan, Ottawa Citizen
More from Kelly Egan, Ottawa Citizen

Published on: May 3, 2016 | Last Updated: May 3, 2016 9:11 PM EDT

Monday we brought you the story of a desperate mother who, after all else failed, began treating her daughter’s chronic respiratory condition with cannabis oil.
She was rewarded with a police investigation and a heart-stopping intervention from child welfare authorities that forced the end of the experiment.
Today, a story that worked out differently. Mandy McKnight gives her son Liam cannabis every day. He’s only eight. Without it, she’s not sure he’d even be alive today.
“It was really life-changing. No question.”
Liam, the youngest of three, suffers from Dravet syndrome, a severe form of epilepsy that left him coping with as many as 70 seizures a day and in a near-catatonic state from powerful medications. “Before we started cannabis, he hadn’t had a seizure-free day in two years.”
Within days of trying cannabis oil in 2013, the number of seizures dramatically decreased and his overall health began to improve. He is now stable and back to school.
McKnight, a Constance Bay resident, has gone public with the family’s story and regularly tries to help parents trying to navigate the uncharted territory of cannabis treatment for children.
“One of the toughest things right now is access,” she said in an interview Tuesday. “It is so hard to find a medical doctor who will prescribe for pediatric patients.”
Indeed, the McKnights — despite a lengthy relationship with the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario — had to fly to Edmonton to meet a physician who would help Liam get his own medical cannabis licence, at age five.
“When we asked about (cannabis oil) at CHEO, we couldn’t even get the words out of our mouth. It was just, ‘No. We do not believe in that here,'” though this attitude seems to be changing.
Once Liam had his licence, the McKnights were able to find a legal supplier, but the regulations were so rigid that the boy was initially required to smoke or vaporize the cannabis, which was impossible.
Instead, they used the dry cannabis to make oil, which Liam would eat in paste form (mixed with coconut oil). However, to monitor the dosage, a sample from each batch would be sent to a lab in B.C. (The correct dosage depends on the right balance of THC, the psychoactive component of marijuana and so-called CBD, or cannabidiol, the medicinal portion.)
McKnight estimates the family was spending about $1,300 a month on cannabis and another $125 a month on lab testing. These costs, she added, are prohibitive for many families, but consider this:
One of Liam’s conventional medicines was costing $1,500 a month and he was still so ill that he was frequently in hospital, and several times had to be taken by ambulance or airlifted to CHEO. And now, she has to fight with her drug plan for coverage of the cannabis, the only drug he takes?
She’s also frustrated that she still can’t buy the cannabis in oil form from the family supplier, despite a Supreme Court of Canada ruling to that effect in June 2015. So she’s stuck making it, which takes at least 12 hours in a crockpot and never comes out exactly the same.
In February, the Canadian Paediatric Society put out a position paper on the use of cannabis. It was full of red flags and warned about the adverse affects on childhood brain development. However, it did acknowledge there is evidence the drug is effective for some epileptic patients.
“I felt threatened,” McKnight said, of reading the document. “I kinda felt like they’re not going to help any of our kids now.”
It’s all well and good to talk about the need for double-blind trials and placebo effects, she said, but how does that help a child in the throes of a seizure today?
“Our kids don’t have time. How long do you wait before you act?”
About 90,000 people in Ontario have epilepsy and, of those, 30,000 are so-called drug resistant. Epilepsy Ontario is regularly contacted by parents looking for information about cannabis treatment for children. There is, evidently, lots of scrambling for legal access.
“Oh absolutely, it is happening in the shadows,” responded Suzanne Nurse, a director with the organization, when asked about parental attempts through the evolving cannabis landscape. Meanwhile, clinical trials are proceeding and the early results, some published in Lancet, are promising,
The McKnight family had tried about 10 conventional medications and a special high-fat diet, but they just weren’t working.
“The future (effects are) unknown. I want him to have a life today.”
To contact Kelly Egan, please call 613-726-5896 or email [email protected]

http://time.com/3100613/pot-harms-teenage-brain/

Experts say teenage use is on the rise

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The number of teenagers who smoke marijuana is on the upswing, and those who do smoke pot may face a decline in brain functioning, psychologists told attendees at the American Psychological Association’s annual convention last week.

“It needs to be emphasized that regular cannabis use, which we consider once a week, is not safe and may result in addiction and neurocognitive damage, especially in youth,” said Krista Lisdahl, an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, in a press release.

Lisdhal’s presentation acknowledged that experts don’t agree on whether pot harms adults, but, she said, all evidence suggests that frequent marijuana consumption harms young people, whose brain development may be altered by the substance. Addiction, car accidents, chronic bronchitis, and decreased life achievement are the most likely among the potential consequences of teenage marijuana consumption, according to a presentation by Alan Budney, a professor at Dartmouth College.

The conclusions come in light of recent data that suggests more and more teenagers are using the drug. A recent study found that 6.5 percent of high school seniors smoke the drug on a daily basis, compared with 2.4 percent in 1993, according to Lisdhal’s presentation. Lisdhal, who is also the director of a brain imaging and neuropsychology lab, said nearly a third of young people reported smoking at least once over a month-long period.

The conference presentations drew their conclusions from surveys of other findings in the field. And, while Lisdhal said there’s “controversy in the adult literature,” the presentations suggested that there’s pretty clear evidence that marijuana consumption harms young people.

Teenage is the age for experimentation (especially sex and drugs), everything is cool during teenage years. That was when I first smoked pot, rode motorbikes, lost my virginity. The best years of one's life are the teenage years! To be young and stupid was fun. Then, we just age, and become old and stupid! And things aren't that fun anymore!

Cheers!

Leongsam said:

Experts say teenage use is on the rise....................

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Holy fuck! If this is the case Cheech and Chong would be useless fucks by now! These two blokes have been on pot since the hippie revolution. And I doubt a day passes where they don't get stoned!!!

Harold and Kumar might just rival the two mentioned potheads. But them both are hard to beat!

Cheers!

Leongsam said:

.......For the first time, scientists have proven that cannabis harms the brain..................

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Leongsam said:

....
Experts say teenage use is on the rise
...

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Teenage cannabis use is similar to teenage drinking.

Hence the solution is the same - regulate the sale and consumption. Only authorised sellers, and no selling to under 18s.

Leongsam said:

Cannabis harms the brain ...

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So does excess drinking

Germany to legalize medical marijuana

Published time: 4 May, 2016 05:50

© Alessandro Bianchi / Reuters


Cannabis will be available to seriously ill German patients on prescription in drug stores and its use may be covered by medical insurance, German Health Minister Hermann Gröhe announced Tuesday. The law is expected to come into force in 2017.

The draft relaxing the regulations on the use of medical marijuana is aimed to alleviating the suffering of seriously ill patients who were previously not eligible to obtain the drug. The draft law is set to be approved by the government Wednesday and then forwarded to the German parliament for further debate.

“Without wishing to pre-judge the work of the Bundestag, it is likely that the law will come into force in the spring of 2017,”Gröhe told die Welt.
One of the key provisions of the law is that medical cannabis will be covered by the patients’ medical insurance.
Read more
CDC guidelines urge doctors to stop testing for cannabis
“Our goal is that seriously ill patients are treated in the best possible way,” Gröhe said, adding that “we want that for the seriously ill patients the cost of cannabis as a medicine will be taken by their health insurance, if they cannot be helped otherwise,” according to the newspaper.

The minister also noted that that the Health Ministry intends to initiate accompanying research into the medical effects of cannabis and that reimbursement will be linked to the participation in a scientific study.

The controversial proposal has been criticized by German Hemp Association, a lobby group advocating for cannabis legalization, which lambasted the suggested compulsory participation of the cannabis patients in the research as a condition for reimbursement as“unprecedented and difficult to accept.”
The ultimate goal of German health authorities is to grow medical marijuana on German soil at specially approved sites. However, it is unlikely the country will build the infrastructure required until 2017.

“Until the government-controlled cultivation in Germany is established, which presupposes cannabis agency, the medical cannabis supply will be covered by import,” Gröhe said. Before, the drug was mainly imported from the Netherlands.


At present, some 5,000 patients take medical cannabis as drops or sprays. Only 500 have obtained special permits to smoke cannabis as a painkiller. The permits are typically issued by the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices.
READ MORE: End global war on drugs, bring in decriminalization to protect human rights, says report

According to a poll by Infratest dimap, published in November, 82 percent of Germans endorse the legalization of cannabis as a painkiller for medical purposes, with some 30 percent in favor of compete legalization of the drug, including for recreational use. It is estimated that some 800,000 patients a year will be eligible to be prescribed medical marijuana for treatment after the law comes into force.

There is nothing wrong with prescribing drugs to treat illnesses or relieve pain Marijuana included.

However the human race is already dumb enough as it is without adding another mind altering substance to the list of social ills.

Drugged driving is causing carnage too. Would you want your children to be run over by someone high on drugs?

http://www.medicaldaily.com/driving...lated-car-crashes-triple-over-10-years-268638

The legalization of marijuana has recently gained more momentum in the U.S., since states like Colorado and Washington allow the sale and possession of the drug for both medicinal and recreational use. However, there may be a dark side to the benefits of pot when it comes to getting behind the wheel. According to a recent study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, fatal pot-related car crashes have tripled in the U.S. over the last 10 years, posing the question: Is driving under the influence of marijuana dangerous?


In a culture that has continually stressed the effects of drunk driving, most people are aware of the potentially fatal danger of mixing alcohol and driving, but awareness of drugged driving is not as widespread. Drugged driving, such as driving under the influence of pot, poses an equal danger to drunk driving on the nation’s highways. The National Institute on Drug Abuse says the use of any psychoactive drug makes driving a car highly unsafe, putting not only the driver in danger, but also passengers and other drivers on the road. Although the effects of specific drugs differ on how they act in the brain, they all impair abilities necessary for safely operating a vehicle. A driver’s motor skills, balance and coordination, perception, attention, reaction time, and judgment are all altered by the use of these mind-altering drugs.


Young drivers are found to be particularly at risk for drugged driving based on data on youth behaviors. An estimated 10.3 million people aged 12 or older, reported driving under the influence of illegal drugs, according to the 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Now a team of researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, sought to assess just how prevalent marijuana use was in a series of fatal car crashes over the course of 10 years.


Data drawn from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Fatality Analysis Reporting System was obtained to assess the trend of the prevalence of non-alcohol drugs detected in fatally injured drivers in the U.S. The statistics included more than 23,500 drivers from six different states, who were dead within one hour of a car accident between 1999 and 2010. California, Hawaii, Illinois, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and West Virginia, were among the six states examined in the study. These states routinely perform toxicological testing on drivers involved in fatal car crashes.


The findings revealed alcohol contributed to about the same percentage of traffic fatalities throughout the decade, roughly at 40 percent. However, drugs were seen to play an increasingly prevalent role in fatal car crashes, accounting for more than 28 percent of deaths in 2010, compared to 16 percent in 1999. The biggest drug culprit was found to be marijuana, jumping from four percent in 1999 to 12 percent in 2010, or triple the amount.


"Currently, one of nine drivers involved in fatal crashes would test positive for marijuana," said Dr. Guohua Li, co-author of the study and director of the Center for Injury Epidemiology and Prevention at Columbia told HealthDay. "If this trend continues, in five or six years non-alcohol drugs will overtake alcohol to become the most common substance involved in deaths related to impaired driving." In addition, the combination of alcohol and marijuana use will dramatically increase a driver’s risk of death 24 times that of a sober person.


These statistics could be sobering for teens who believe drugged driving is safer than drunk driving. Marijuana affects a person’s concentration, perception, and reaction time up to 24 hours after it’s smoked. This is much longer than the duration in which alcohol can affect a person’s behavior.


In a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, researchers found drugs and driving are a bigger problem than previously thought. The report unveiled 45 percent of drivers who were stopped by police for reckless driving had marijuana in their systems, while 25 percent had cocaine. None of these drivers had alcohol in their systems.


These studies highlight the need for an accurate test to check a driver’s marijuana intoxication during a traffic stop. Currently, a test using a driver’s salvia is available to check for cannabis levels, but it is not viewed as precise as the Breathalyzer, and has not been widely used by the police, according to Li. The urgency for an efficient testing method or technique lies in the fact that marijuana users who get behind the wheel may be pulled over for their erratic driving, but are usually let go. These drivers pass the Breathalyzer tests since alcohol is not in their system, and current marijuana tests are not as reliable or accurate.


While there is an established evidence that alcohol increases accident risk, evidence of marijuana’s effects on driving are slowly surfacing. Driving under the influence of marijuana, alcohol, or both impairs a driver’s judgment, putting in danger themselves and all those on the road. Those who are operating a motor vehicle are advised to not drink or smoke pot and drive, to save lives.

Leongsam said:

There is nothing wrong with prescribing drugs to treat illnesses or relieve pain Marijuana included.

However the human race is already dumb enough as it is without adding another mind altering substance to the list of social ills.

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Human beings will always find ways to achieve a high. Drinking fermented grain water, sniffing glue, chewing roots, snorting dried plant sap, licking colourful toads...

If the sale of alcohol and tobacco can be regulated, so can the breeding and licking of colourful toads

In my younger days, I live a little reckless at times and have driven, both drunk and stoned. The difference between the two is this - when you're drunk, you don't give a shit, and tend to drive fast! On the other hand, when you're stoned, you become paranoid - and drive very very slowly. Ask anyone who's done both, see if they agree with me. Now today as a middle-aged tax-paying law abiding citizen, I don't dwink and dwive, and its been a good half decade since I smoked dope. And I don't condone either. All I am saying is that pot isn't as dangerous as what the authorities say it is. It is a harmless natural herb. Arresting anybody for consuming ganja is unnecessarily harsh a law that needs to be reviewed. If more people smoked pot, there would be less violence. For sure.

Cheers!

Leongsam said:

...................In a culture that has continually stressed the effects of drunk driving, most people are aware of the potentially fatal danger of mixing alcohol and driving, but awareness of drugged driving is not as widespread. Drugged driving, such as driving under the influence of pot, poses an equal danger to drunk driving on the nation’s highways. The National Institute on Drug Abuse says the use of any psychoactive drug makes driving a car highly unsafe, putting not only the driver in danger, but also passengers and other drivers on the road. Although the effects of specific drugs differ on how they act in the brain, they all impair abilities necessary for safely operating a vehicle. A driver’s motor skills, balance and coordination, perception, attention, reaction time, and judgment are all altered by the use of these mind-altering drugs....................

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In Sinkieland, the only benefit that will derived from weeds is Changi Prison.

Agoraphobic said:

Teenage is the age for experimentation (especially sex and drugs), everything is cool during teenage years. That was when I first smoked pot, rode motorbikes, lost my virginity. The best years of one's life are the teenage years! To be young and stupid was fun. Then, we just age, and become old and stupid! And things aren't that fun anymore!

Cheers!

Click to expand...

U a cancer patient???
U really sound like one

You only have to look at Cannabis user to see the impact on his or her life. Not talking about those who experimented and moved away. Even recreational light users overtime come out with imaginary medical conditions to justify to themselves why they need it. Imagine if it treated like liquor? You go to be an idiot not fro igure this out. No issue with medical marijuana.