Scientists have been telling us for years that weed has real medical benefits other than communing with Jah or enhancing the taste and texture of Funyuns, and now they've added new, compelling research to the pile, indicating that marijuana may be an excellent treatment for symptoms of multiple sclerosis. Researchers at the University of California, San Diego recently sought to treat "spasticity," a tightening and uncontrollability of muscles that is frequently a symptom of MS, through use of weed rather than traditional medications. The experiment was largely quite a success.
"Using an objective measure, we saw a beneficial effect of inhaled cannabis on spasticity among patients receiving insufficient relief from traditional treatment, said one of the study's co-authors from the University of California, San Diego. "Smoked cannabis was superior to placebo in symptom and pain reduction in participants with treatment-resistant spasticity."
Researchers gave patients joints that "resembled the strength most commonly available in the community" to test the effects of smoking marijuana versus ingesting it orally. Overall, participants who smoked experienced a decrease of about one-third on the scale of spasticity, and though the treatment was "generally well-tolerated" some participants complained of symptoms such as drowsiness and "feeling too high."
Thus, researchers are now looking into further studies with lower doses and less cognitive effect, but really, can't we just stop right here and declare weed the new miracle drug? Maybe we should even start prescribing it as a catch-all preventative medicine?
