In 2003, the Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience published a study about using medical marijuana on patients with Tourette syndrome (TS). To nobody’s surprise, it helped reduced the motor tics and disturbing outburst. According to another research article published in Behavioral Neurology, THC and CBD both showed promising signs for treating and controlling symptoms of Tourette’s Syndrome in both adults and children.
To top it off, let’s not forget that different cannabis strains come with a range of calming effects that are helpful for those who struggle with sleeplessness, anger, obsessiveness, or anxiety – all of which accompany Tourette’s Syndrome. Both CBD and THC marijuana strains may relieve symptoms of TS depending on the individual case.
Medical marijuana can help reduce symptoms of Tourette’s Syndrome and the following symptoms:
- Insomnia
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Restlessness
- Motor Tics
- Outburst
Researchers also believe that marijuana can and does decreases the number of motor tics in a similar way it does in patients with Tremors and/or Parkinson’s Disease. Many researchers think it has something to do with our endocannabinoid system, but there is still much more research and study to be done.
For many individuals with Tourette syndrome (TS), the medications available on the market do not help with their condition, or if they do will end up causing major side effects. Two small controlled trials have investigated the effect of oral delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a principal psychoactive ingredient of cannabis, in TS patients. While these trials have shown promising results, the effect sizes were not as large and consistent as those reported by patients with regards to inhaled cannabis (smoked or vaporized). The results as based on anecdotal evidence show the patients have much better improvement in their symptoms using smoking or vaping rather than using oral administration or another route. Please Contact All Natural MD medical marijuana doctors in Florida to learn more or get started on medical marijuana treatment today. We have locations all over the State of Florida to assist you with your Florida medical marijuana card including locations in Sarasota, Bradenton, Tampa, Brandon, Lakeland, Orlando, Kissimmee and Lake Mary. All Natural MD (800) 250-6737There are many studies, articles and data online and readily available to all as it relates to using THC prescribed by a marijuana doctor help with chronic depression. If you are one of many Americans dealing with this condition, you might have these and other questions about marijuana and its role as a possible treatment. Anxiety and Depression disorders are the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 40 million adults in the United States age 18 and older every year.
Types of Depression
There are different types of depressive disorders, and while there are many similarities among them, each depressive disorder has its own unique set of symptoms. The most commonly diagnosed form of depression is Major Depressive Disorder. In 2017, around 17.3 million aged 18 years or older in the U.S. had experienced at least one major depressive episode in the last year, which represented 6.7 percent of all American adults. Depression is the leading cause of disability in the United States among people ages 15-44. View Data Here.
Speak to a healthcare professional before attempting to experiment with cannabis. As you will learn, using the wrong dosage or the wrong strain can worsen symptoms of depression which is why the advice of an expert medical cannabis physician is important.
At this moment in time there are very few human studies that focus on cannabis and depression. That being said, there is a significant amount of research on the role of the endocannabinoid system plays in regulating ones mood and treating depression symptoms.
What exactly is the endocannabinoid system?
In the human body, the endocannabinoid system is a system that helps cells maintain homeostasis. Homeostasis refers to each cell being in the right place, doing its job and doing its job well.
Researchers in other countries found that the endocannabinoid system helps regulate mood and symptoms of depression and other conditions such as Anxiety, PTSD, Bi Polar and ADHD. Receptors in the endocannabinoid system interact with cannabinoids like tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD). With a measured approach to dosage, THC and CBD can be used to regulate and balance the endocannabinoid system and improve mood function. Be careful when treating depression with marijuana as per a study published in the Journal of Neuroscience found that high THC doses could actually reduce serotonin and potentially worsen symptoms of depression.
Animal Studies?
While there are few human studies that focus on depression and CBD, there are numerous animal studies that show CBD as a promising treatment for depression. Another study published focused on the effect of CBD on mice. Researchers also tested the effects of CBD and mice who were forced to participate in a variety of tests.
In a study published in the Journal of Progress in Neuropsychopharmacology Biological Psychiatry scientifically ties CBD with improved serotonin levels in the brain. What does this mean you ask? CBD may have an anti-depressant type effects on individuals experiencing depression.
Researchers also found and have agreed that CBD/THC produces fast acting antidepressant like effects to help with mood and major depression disorders ( Amygdala core nuclei). Contact All Natural MD Florida today to get started on your medical marijuana card. All Natural MD Florida locations are all over the State of Florida to assist you with securing your cannabis card and physician recommendation quickly ands easily. We have offices for medical marijuana card approvals in Lakeland, Orlando, Sarasota, Bradenton, Lake Mary, Tampa and Brandon.
Cannabis which is also known as marijuana, weed, pot, herb, etc…is a plant that comes from and are believed to have evolved on the steppes of Central Asia, specifically in the regions that are now Mongolia and southern Siberia, according to Warf. The history of cannabis use goes back as far as 12,000 years.
Humans have been using cannabis for thousands of years primarily for fiber, (popularly known as hemp), seed oil, medical purposes and for recreation. It is predominantly smoked, vaped, absorbed under the tongue or swallowed. It can also be applied directly to the skin.
The history of cannabis use has been marked by restriction, especially since the beginning of the 20th century. Many countries continue to have strict rules on possession, use or sale of marijuana, thus rendering it illegal in those places. In other places, herb is readily available, with several countries and states having legalized cannabis for recreational or medical purposes.
In 2018, a country legalized cannabis at the federal level, ushering in a new era for users. This article will cover all you need to know about cannabis, from the different types of plants, to cannabis plant anatomy, to modern uses for the cannabis plant.
What is Cannabis?
Cannabis is a term that broadly refers to a genus of flowering plants. To define cannabis as a drug used for recreational and medical purposes, while true, fails to tell the whole story. In fact, cannabis has been used as a significant material in textiles and as food throughout history in the form of hemp. Hemp, however, is very low in both THC and CBD, the two major molecules of therapeutic and recreational interest. So for the purpose of this article we will be referring primarily to cannabis that is cultivated for medicinal and recreational purposes as opposed to fiber and food.
So how is medicinal and recreational cannabis different from hemp? When people ask “what is cannabis?”, they are really asking about a medicine or a recreational drug with a wide range of psychoactive and physiologic effects. The part of the plant we are generally talking about is the clusters of flowers cannabis plants produce, a mass often referred to as the cola.
Flower, or bud, can be smoked or vaporized in dry form, but is also commonly extracted to produce a concentrated form. Other materials from the plant such as the stems and leaves may also be used, although these parts contain much less of the active ingredients. These extracts are often diluted with a carrier oil before being sold by licensed producers.
How many types of Cannabis are there?
That depends on how you classify Cannabis. This plant is often categorized a number of different ways, for example:
- By strain (Indica, Sativa, hybrid)
- By cannabinoid content (CBD%, THC%)
- By its form or administration method (oil, hash, wax, flower, milled, edible, capsule, smoke, vape)
- By terpene content (limonene, ocimene, linalool, myrcene)
The most common way people classify cannabis is by identifying a strain as either an Indica, a Sativa or some form of hybrid. We won’t get into the botanical debate about whether these represent distinct species or not but rather focus on some of the current thinking about classifying cannabis this way.
When we talk about Sativa and Indica varieties we are really talking about the way the plant looks. This is called the morphology or phenotype. Tall with thin leaves vs short with wide leaves. By simply looking at cannabis plants you might be tempted to classify them this way. But this classification is not very scientific and does not adequately describe or classify the plants by their effect on the human body. Modern plants have been cross bred so many times that some may look like an Indica plant but chemically have a great deal of sativa properties.
Although these two types of cannabis are very different in appearance, their chemical makeup or chemotype is really what we are interested in when we think about cannabis as medicine. This is so much more important than the way the plants look or how they are prone to grow differently.
One of the most interesting things about cannabis is that it is dioecious, which means there are separate female and male plants. Most plants have both male and female traits within a single plant but cannabis has two distinct sexes. Male plants produce pollen sacs that fertilize the females, which in turn grow seed pods.
But female plants don’t need to be pollinated to produce marijuana. In fact, unpollinated female plants tend to produce flowers that are more resinous and richer in terpenes and cannabinoids as they are able to put all of their growth energy into producing medicine rather than seeds. The technique of growing cannabis while keeping male and female plants separated leads to females growing large flowers with no seeds.
These flowers or buds form together to make colas. Sometimes the cola at the top of the female plant is the most significant. It may be comprised of hundreds of tiny flowers and in full grown plants can exceed 4 feet by the time it is ready to be harvested. Smaller buds and colas can form all over the plant and contain the highest concentration of medicine. Contrary to popular belief the typical and well recognized cannabis leaf contains relatively little medicine. Each cannabis flower is densely covered in glandular trichomes which secrete marijuana’s medicinal resin. These glands carry the majority of the terpenoids and cannabinoids that we use medicinally.
What might Cannabis be used for?
There is a lot of research underway to understand if cannabis may be useful to treat a variety of conditions including:
Scientific research on cannabis as a medicine is understood to have faced significant setbacks due to the history of restrictions imposed on production and possession in countries across the globe. Many doctors and health care providers feel there is not yet enough evidence to support the use of cannabis in treating certain conditions. In other conditions, there is more evidence and the use of cannabis has become more accepted.
As medicinal cannabis becomes used more often, there is a great opportunity to gather data on the benefits and potential risk of this medicine moving forward.
At we support the notion that much more research is needed to fully unlock the therapeutic potential of the cannabis plant as well as to identify possible harms of using cannabis as medicine.
As with many medications there are both potential benefits and side effects. Depending on the way it is administered, potency and individual circumstances immediate side effects of using cannabis may include:
- dry mouth
- decrease in short-term memory
- paranoia
- poor coordination
- red eyes
- anxiety
- blood pressure changes
Long-term side effects can include both mental and physical problems including but not limited to, cognitive impairment, addiction and bronchitis
Contact All Natural MD today (800) 250-6737 as we encourage you to resist the temptation to self-medicate and speak with a medical professional first. A trained doctor can help you take a measured approach to cannabis dosage and select the right strains according to your unique condition.
Contact All Natural MD today to learn more about qualifying for a medical marijuana card in Florida. Our doctors are authorized and certified to recommend medical cannabis in all of Florida including Sarasota and Bradenton Florida. All Natural MD