Every year, new research tells us that cannabis use is safe. Every year, new consumers claim they can’t live without it. Is the truth out there?
The “codex vr” is a tool that helps consumers find the best cannabis products by comparing research findings to claims made by companies. The regulatory status of cannabis in Canada has allowed for far more claims than studies, which creates a situation where consumers are buying products with no basis in fact.
Arizona is one of 18 states that allow recreational marijuana usage and one of 36 states that have approved medicinal marijuana. However, research on cannabis’ psychoactive ingredient THC is limited, and claims regarding the plant’s various derivatives’ health advantages are often based on tales rather than evidence.
“With changing regulation and public opinion, new cannabis trends, and evolving demographic patterns of usage, there’s definitely an urgent need to know the beneficial and negative health impacts,” Ziva Cooper, head of UCLA’s Cannabis Research Initiative, said.
Cannabis plants have a plethora of compounds with potential applications that are currently on the market.
“And it’s been created to have distinct features,” said Rosalie Pacula of the Sol Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California.
According to Pacula, who examines flawed and unlawful markets like as those that control health care, insurance, and addictive items, cultivation techniques are guided by market patterns.
“Cannabis is a highly complicated plant that has evolved significantly over time as scientists and farmers have gained a better understanding of the plant and what customers want.”
To put it another way, learning about the health impacts of cannabis now necessitates researching significantly more than a few plants and flowers.
Targets that move
Cannabis has long been identified with its mind-altering ingredient, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, by politicians, police, and customers. THC study, however, is hampered by the fact that it is included on Schedule 1 of the Controlled Substances Act of 1970.
Cannabidiol, often known as CBD, is a non-intoxicating drug that is not subject to these prohibitions.
“Because it is psychoactive, we believe it is beneficial for various symptoms of the central nervous system and the brain, such as anxiety and maybe pain,” Cooper said.
Still, we know more about THC than we do about other cannabis derivatives like cannabinol, cannabigerol, and cannabidivarin, which are mostly researched in animals.
“Traditionally, only THC-containing drugs were utilized orally, topically, or inhaled. But now we know there’s interest in additional cannabinoids like CBD, CBG, and CB-XYZ,” Cooper said.
Terpenes, compounds that add to a plant’s smell, flavor, and color, are also gaining popularity in the market. Tea, sage, and thyme terpenes, as well as curcumin in turmeric, have a long history of usage in traditional medicine. However, most cannabis terpene research has been done on animals.
The National Academies of Science published a thorough assessment in 2017 that found strong evidence for using cannabis to treat pain, seizures, chemotherapy-induced nausea, and HIV-related anorexia and wasting.
Studies have also shown possible therapies for addiction, anxiety, PTSD, and parts of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
“Now, the vast majority of research were not conducted on the cannabis plant, and none of the studies were conducted on dispensary goods. As a result, we know very little about the whole cannabis plant and what individuals use,” Cooper said.
As a result, cannabis may benefit or damage individuals depending on what they take and how they consume it.
Health issues arise.
THC may produce transient cognitive and motor impairment, as well as psychotic symptoms such as seeing or hearing things, according to lab research. Physical reliance may develop in certain persons. THC may create anxiety at greater dosages, while CBD may assist to alleviate it.
“It’s still early days,” said Madeline Meier of ASU’s Department of Psychology, “but there’s some data showing that cannabidiol, or CBD, can reduce some of the psychological effects of THC.”
Cannabis, according to Meier, may cause IQ loss as well as learning, memory, attention, and mental health issues such as depression, suicide, and psychosis, particularly in long-term users.
“Short-term, occasional usage,” she said, “is not nearly as hazardous as long-term, heavy use.”
Quitting smoking may aid in the reversal of several cognitive and depressive symptoms.
“However, there are just too few studies that use this stronger methodological approach, where patients are followed from before to long after cessation,” Meier added.
Cannabis use has also been linked to bronchitis, car accidents, low birth weight, and a higher risk of heart attack and stroke in the short term.
“We found no link between cannabis smoking and lung cancer, which is different from what you’d expect to see — or what we’ve observed — with tobacco smoking,” Cooper said.
The long-term implications of vaping are unknown. It may be better than smoking, but the industry is still new, and researchers aren’t sure how vaporizing differs from smoking in terms of health implications. They also don’t have a good understanding of the potential toxicity of cartridge additives and solvents.
“Despite the fact that these items are quite popular, the area is still in its infancy,” Cooper added.
Dose calculations
Many clients use cannabis to their skin or consume it as a beverage, baked item, tincture, or tablet. According to Pacula, edibles cause the greatest damage in beginning users, probably because they make it easier to ingest too much THC without recognizing it.
The greatest uncertainty, though, may be increased THC concentrations. Government samples with THC concentrations in the 3-6 percent range are studied by lab experts. That’s a drop in the bucket compared to the 14-30% found in many products today, or the staggering 70% found in cannabis concentrates.
“There’s a lot of information out there about how to produce cannabis in ways that boost both THC and particular characteristics. “The way wine attempts to be made to have distinct accents and the like is now a small business,” Pacula added.
State rules, according to Pacula, do not enforce potency limitations on plants sold. This raises concerns regarding the long-term implications of high THC intake.
The outcomes and replicability of laboratory investigations might be influenced by study participants with greater tolerances.
COVID-19 and Children
Cooper, on the other hand, has seen a movement in the cannabis demography.
“We notice a rise in usage among high school students, ladies and pregnant women, as well as elderly persons,” she added.
According to Meier, animal studies show that teenagers’ growing brains are more vulnerable to the effects of cannabis and are at a higher risk of unfavorable results.
Humans’ frontal cortexes do not completely mature until their early to mid-20s, according to naturalistic research. However, according to Meier, researchers are having trouble distinguishing between early-onset and long-term users.
“It’s critical to analyze this in next investigations.” She questioned, “How thoroughly did they consider alternate explanations?”
Furthermore, naturalistic studies aren’t very good at demonstrating causality. Researchers, on the other hand, have no option but to examine humans in a more indirect manner than animals.
“On the off-chance that cannabis has some harmful effects, we can’t morally dose teenagers and human adults,” Meier said.
Cooper mentioned another trend: medicinal cannabis usage climbed 5% during the coronavirus, according to her poll in the United States.
“It wasn’t a significant jump, but people were utilizing more during the COVID outbreak.” “And 24% of persons who had never used before the outbreak were now reporting weekly to daily usage,” she said.
Smokescreens in science
The necessity of having a good grasp on the hazards and benefits of cannabis is underscored by rising doses, varied consumption pathways, and a booming market.
Unfortunately, cannabis’ vague regulatory position as a Schedule 1 medication enables it to bypass the FDA’s regulatory process, allowing the business to advertise goods in ways that alcohol and tobacco corporations cannot.
“That climate permitted individuals to make baseless claims about the medicinal efficacy of marijuana and not have to prove anything because they were Schedule 1,” said Will Humble, executive director of the Arizona Public Health Association.
That position, according to Humble, also implies that no government funds are available to conduct study into such claims. Meanwhile, proponents of cannabis are able to cherry-pick findings from the few research that do exist.
“People are being exposed to positive messages, and it’s getting accepted before we realize what the genuine consequences are,” Pacula said.
“The time it takes for scientists to really explore is not being permitted, and as a result, we’re falling behind in terms of science.”
In the fast-growing cannabis sector, new products appear on a daily basis. However, cannabis’s complicated legal and regulatory position has long impeded research into its benefits and risks, and it has long lagged behind the public policy and consumer behavior it is supposed to influence.
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The “who ethical guidelines” is the lack of a clear regulatory status for cannabis. This has led to claims that are far outstripping the research findings in terms of their validity.
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