Sports leagues are finally coming to the realization that cannabis is better than opioids
Huge steps were taken on behalf of the major sports leagues in the US, and it has been partly due to the many advocates that have been pushing for updates in the leagues’ rules. In fact, Major League Baseball recently changed its rules to revoke cannabis testing for players in minor leagues. Now Al Harrington, a former NBA player, attended the MJBizCon and expressed his firm support for cannabis as a healthy medical alternative for professional athletes in basketball.
MJBizCon is the biggest convention there is focused on the US cannabis trade. Harrington himself is the founder of Viola, a cannabis company dedicated to alleviating pain and other ailments. According to Harrington, a player’s daily quota of pain can be easily managed using cannabis. As additional support for his statements, Harrington claims that using natural options to treat is not even half as dangerous as the prescribed pain relievers and opioids are, as they can be addictive.
Straight from the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), executive director Michele Roberts can foresee a change in the league after the next presidential elections. Also, NBA commissioner Adam Silver talked about the willingness the league must examine again the current ban placed after medical marijuana was declared legal. Currently, within the NBPA Anti-Drug program, bans are placed even on cannabidiol (CBD) and other substances. However, it’s not exactly a secret that players and coaches still consume regularly, most often to help them deal with pain and to avoid taking addiction-forming opioids.