Continuing research offers positive results for the use of cannabis in treating pain
People with chronic pain who do not receive sufficient relief may resort to smoking small doses of marijuana. While cannabidiol (CBD) extracts have surged in popularity due to their effects on back pain, a recent study found that smoking marijuana is even more effective than those products in treating the condition.
Many people today prefer alternative solutions to smoking for a variety of reasons. Cannabis smoke is known to contain many of the same chemicals and carcinogens as cigarette smoke. As a consequence, it could have harmful effects on people’s health, especially if they face cardiovascular or respiratory problems.
However, a small new study conducted in Israel has shown that smoking the plant is better than ingesting it, at least when it comes to relieving various lower back pains. More than 20 adults affected by herniated discs or spinal stenosis were enrolled by the researchers. All were asked to try two different types of marijuana treatment.
One of these was based on a CBD-rich cannabis extract, which was consumed for a period of ten months (daily) sublingually. There was a one-month break, and then they switched to a treatment of smoking tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-rich cannabis flowers up to four times a day for 12 months.
According to the study findings, it was shown that there was virtually no noticeable improvement in back pain when participants consumed the extract. However, the picture was completely different in the second phase, when patients showed a marked improvement when smoking cannabis.
“The current study is the first, to our knowledge, to indicate that THC-rich smoked therapy is more advantageous in ameliorating LBP (lower back pain) than low THC CBD-rich sublingual extracts. Despite the small number of patients, our data indicate that THC-rich smoked therapy is helpful in mitigating LBP,” researchers reported.