Enter any bar or public place and canvass opinions on cannabis and there is a different opinion for each person canvassed. Some opinions will soon be well-informed from respectable sources while others will soon be just formed upon no basis at all. To be sure, research and conclusions based on the research is difficult given the long history of illegality. Nevertheless, there is a groundswell of opinion that cannabis is good and must be legalised. Many States in America and Australia took the way to legalise cannabis. Other countries are either following suit or considering options. So what is the position now? Is it good or not?

The National Academy of Sciences published a 487 page report in 2010 (NAP Report) on the present state of evidence for the niche matter. Many government grants supported the task of the committee, an eminent number of 16 professors. These were supported by 15 academic reviewers and some 700 relevant publications considered. Thus the report is seen as state of the art on medical as well as recreational use. This information draws heavily on this resource.

The word cannabis is used loosely here to represent cannabis and marijuana, the latter being sourced from a different part of the plant. More than 100 chemical compounds are within cannabis, each potentially offering differing benefits or risk.

CLINICAL INDICATIONS

An individual who is "stoned" on smoking cannabis might experience a euphoric state where time is irrelevant, music and colours undertake a larger significance and the person might acquire the "nibblies", wanting to consume sweet and fatty foods. That is often associated with impaired motor skills and perception. When high blood concentrations are achieved, paranoid thoughts, hallucinations and panic attacks may characterize his "trip" ;.

PURITY

In the vernacular, cannabis is frequently characterized as "good shit" and "bad shit", alluding to widespread contamination practice. The contaminants may originate from soil quality (eg pesticides & heavy metals) or added subsequently. Sometimes particles of lead or tiny beads of glass augment the weight sold.

THERAPEUTIC EFFECTS

A random selection of therapeutic effects appears here in context of the evidence status. A number of the effects will soon be shown as beneficial thc concentrates europe, while others carry risk. Some effects are barely distinguished from the placebos of the research.

• Cannabis in treating epilepsy is inconclusive on account of insufficient evidence.
• Nausea and vomiting brought on by chemotherapy may be ameliorated by oral cannabis.
• A reduction in the severity of pain in patients with chronic pain is really a likely outcome for the utilization of cannabis.
• Spasticity in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients was reported as improvements in symptoms.
• Increase in appetite and decline in weight loss in HIV/ADS patients has been shown in limited evidence.
• According to limited evidence cannabis is ineffective in treating glaucoma.
• On the cornerstone of limited evidence, cannabis is beneficial in treating Tourette syndrome.
• Post-traumatic disorder has been helped by cannabis in one single reported trial.
• Limited statistical evidence points to raised outcomes for traumatic brain injury.
• There's insufficient evidence to claim that cannabis can help Parkinson's disease.
• Limited evidence dashed hopes that cannabis could help improve the symptoms of dementia sufferers.
• Limited statistical evidence can be found to support an association between smoking cannabis and heart attack.
• On the cornerstone of limited evidence cannabis is ineffective to treat depression
• The evidence for reduced risk of metabolic issues (diabetes etc) is bound and statistical.
• Social anxiety disorders may be helped by cannabis, although the evidence is limited. Asthma and cannabis use isn't well supported by the evidence either for or against.
• Post-traumatic disorder has been helped by cannabis in one single reported trial.
• A summary that cannabis can help schizophrenia sufferers cannot be supported or refuted on the cornerstone of the limited nature of the evidence.
• There's moderate evidence that better short-term sleep outcomes for disturbed sleep individuals.
• Pregnancy and smoking cannabis are correlated with reduced birth weight of the infant.
• The evidence for stroke brought on by cannabis use is bound and statistical.
• Addiction to cannabis and gateway issues are complex, considering many variables which can be beyond the scope of this article. These issues are fully discussed in the NAP report.

CANCER

The NAP report highlights these findings on the issue of cancer:

• The evidence suggests that smoking cannabis does not increase the risk for certain cancers (i.e., lung, head and neck) in adults.
• There's modest evidence that cannabis use is associated with one subtype of testicular cancer.
• There's minimal evidence that parental cannabis use during pregnancy is associated with greater cancer risk in offspring.

RESPIRATORY DISEASE

The NAP report highlights these findings on the issue of respiratory diseases:

• Smoking cannabis on a regular basis is associated with chronic cough and phlegm production.
• Quitting cannabis smoking is likely to reduce chronic cough and phlegm production.
• It is unclear whether cannabis use is associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, asthma, or worsened lung function.

IMMUNE SYSTEM

The NAP report highlights these findings on the issue of the human immune system:

• There exists a paucity of data on the results of cannabis or cannabinoid-based therapeutics on the human immune system.
• There's insufficient data to draw overarching conclusions concerning the results of cannabis smoke or cannabinoids on immune competence.
• There's limited evidence to claim that regular exposure to cannabis smoke may have anti-inflammatory activity.
• There's insufficient evidence to support or refute a statistical association between cannabis or cannabinoid use and adverse effects on immune status in people who have HIV.

MORTALITY

The NAP report highlights these findings on the issue of the increased risk of death or injury:

• Cannabis use just before driving increases the risk of being involved with a motor vehicle accident.
• In states where cannabis use is legal, there is increased risk of unintentional cannabis overdose injuries among children.
• It is unclear whether and how cannabis use is associated with all-cause mortality or with occupational injury.

BRAIN FUNCTION

The NAP report highlights these findings on the issue of cognitive performance and mental health:

• Recent cannabis use impairs the performance in cognitive domains of learning, memory, and attention. Recent use might be defined as cannabis use within 24 hours of evaluation.
• A limited quantity of studies suggest that there are impairments in cognitive domains of learning, memory, and attention in individuals who've stopped smoking cannabis.
• Cannabis use during adolescence relates to impairments in subsequent academic achievement and education, employment and income, and social relationships and social roles.
• Cannabis use is likely to increase the risk of developing schizophrenia and other psychoses; the larger the utilization, the higher the risk.
• In people who have schizophrenia and other psychoses, a history of cannabis use might be associated with better performance on learning and memory tasks.
• Cannabis use does not appear to increase the likelihood of developing depression, anxiety, and posttraumatic stress disorder.
• For individuals identified as having bipolar disorders, near daily cannabis use might be associated with greater symptoms of bipolar disorder than for nonusers.
• Heavy cannabis users are more likely to report thoughts of suicide than are nonusers.
• Regular cannabis use is likely to increase the risk for developing social anxiety disorder.

It should be reasonably clear from the foregoing that cannabis isn't the magic bullet for many health issues that some good-intentioned but ill-advised advocates of cannabis could have us believe. Yet the merchandise offers much hope. Solid research can help to clarify the issues. The NAP report is really a solid part of the proper direction. Unfortunately, there are still many barriers to researching this particular drug. Over time the benefits and risks may well be more fully understood. Confidence in the merchandise will increase and most of the barriers, social and academic, will fall by the wayside.