[ad_1]
TUESDAY, Feb. 5, 2019 (HealthDay News) – New research shows that Americans primarily use marijuana for medical purposes to relieve chronic pain.
"We wanted to understand why people are using cannabis for medical purposes and whether these reasons are based on evidence," said lead author Kevin Boehnke. He is a researcher at the Chronic Pain and Fatigue Research Center at the University of Michigan.
Boehnke and his colleagues reviewed data from a 2017 report of the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine on the medical use of marijuana (cannabis). This report revealed conclusive or substantial evidence that marijuana alleviated chronic pain, nausea and vomiting due to chemotherapy and muscle spasms of multiple sclerosis.
Although the number of US medical marijuana patients has increased from more than 641,000 in 2016 to nearly 814,000 in 2017, researchers have indicated that this figure was likely well below the actual number of patients in Canada. users.
According to the study, 85.5% of licensees reported seeking treatment for an evidence-based health problem, with chronic pain accounting for 62% of qualifying conditions.
The researchers said this discovery was consistent with the prevalence of chronic pain, which affects about 100 million Americans.
Brandian Smith, 37, of Pana, Ill., Is qualified for her marijuana license for medical purposes because she suffers from fibromyalgia.
She said to the Associated press that in bad days, his muscles feel as if they are tight in a vise. She said that she had stopped taking opioid painkillers because marijuana worked best for her. She spends about $ 300 a month at her marijuana dispensary.
"Cannabis is the first thing I've found that really wipes out the pain and does not leave me so high that I can not enjoy my day," Smith said. AP.
Since 2018, marijuana use for medical purposes has been legal in 33 states and the District of Columbia, while recreational use is legal in 10 states. However, the federal government continues to rank the pot among drugs, with no medical use currently accepted and with a high potential for abuse.
This study supports the legitimate use of marijuana for medical purposes, which is based on factual evidence, which calls into question its drug status with the federal government, Boehnke said.
This is important because more and more Americans are looking for safer alternatives to opioids for pain relief.
"As the majority of US states have legalized cannabis for medical purposes, we should think about the best way to properly regulate cannabis and safely incorporate cannabis into medical practice," Boehnke said. in a press release from the University of Michigan.
The study was published in the February issue of the journal Health Affairs.
[ad_2]
Source link
