California Studies find pot is effective on MS/ nerve pain

[NoComply]

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - The first U.S. clinical trials in more than two decades on the medical benefits of marijuana confirm pot is effective in reducing muscle spasms associated with multiple sclerosis and pain caused by certain neurological injuries or illnesses, according to a report issued Wednesday.

Igor Grant, a psychiatrist who directs the Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research at the University of California at San Diego, said five studies funded by the state involved volunteers who were randomly given real marijuana or placebos to determine if the herb provided relief not seen from traditional medicines.
"There is good evidence now that cannabinoids may be either an adjunct or a first-line treatment," Grant said at a news conference where he presented the findings.

The California Legislature established the research center in 2000 to examine whether the therapeutic claims of medical marijuana advocates could withstand scientific scrutiny. In 1996, state voters became the first in the nation to pass a law approving pot use for medical purposes.

Thirteen other states have followed suit, but California is the only one so far to sponsor medical marijuana research. After 10 years and nearly $9 million, the Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research is preparing to wrap up its work next year.

Along with the studies on muscle spasms and pain associated with spinal cord injuries and AIDS, the center has funded research on how marijuana affects sleep and driving, limb pain due to diabetes, and whether inhaling vaporized cannabis is as effective as smoking it.

A laboratory study supported by the center examined if pot could be helpful in treating migraine headaches and facial pain. In that study, rats given a cannabislike drug exhibited reduced activity of nerve cells that transmit pain.


Here is the link for the article.
http://treatingyourself.com/vbulletin/archive/index.php?t-41487.html

This is very good news as my mom suffers from nerve pain in her face(facial neuralgia). She was taking dilaudid's which did very little for the actual pain, just made her a messed up zombie. I recommended pot to her a while ago and she was amazed at how much it helped. It was enough to get through her day and this just supports what she already knew.

[WhatThe]

And to think some would have the nerve and gall to call her a criminal hey nocomply? Really, to even think that she (or anyone who could benefit, listed above ) should have to "apply" for a liscence to exempt her from "criminal status" (medical marijuana) for such a mild drug while freely given dilaudid (synthetic opiate) is beyond logic. Dilaudid is about four steps down in power from heroin, the most potent of all opiates. If anyone has taken Tylenol 3's, oxycontin (T4's) oxycodone, percocets etc for more than a week will testify how powerful those are, the withdrawal makes you feel like a wet blanket for weeks.
They're have been times over the years sick as a dog, flu, sinus infection, pnuemonia where I was so ill that eating and sleeping was difficult. A few hoots and half an hour later food is palatable, feel less naseaueous and able to get some rest. Why should I be a "criminal" for treating symptoms when everybody does the same thing by using over the counter meds, gravol, Tylenol, aspirin, decongestants, sudafed, etc. All those can have serious side effects, especially Tylenol since it's found in many cold and flu remedies and are typically mixed together by people to achieve the same effect as smking or ingesting some pot. I think the number of deaths per year is twenty (regardless if it's five, ten, fifteen or twenty there are no documented cases of pot overdose that leads to death) for acute liver failure from acetominophen poisoning.
One should be able to, at the very least, go to a doctor and ask for a scrip of pot just like one would for opiates. Honestly there is absolutely no logical reason why not.
The results of this study are good news and should take us another step in the right direction.

Another thing, I don't know how nocomplys mom would get the pot but I'm going to assume it's from "illegal" sources. Meaning she's opening her self, or someone she cares about, up to the dirty underbelly of the drug dealing business. Complete insanity if that's the case, let's turn a lawabiding member of society, our neighbour, into a "criminal" for treating their illness.