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HEMP News, Marijuana Pill May Be Better For Pain Than Smoked Form, Study Finds

Interesting read below about pill form of MJ;

Hemp News A new study confirms what medical marijuana patients have known for years -- that ingesting cannabis through eating works longer than smoking -- while also possibly representing a further move by Big Pharma for a strategic takeover of the medicinal cannabis business.

The study found that a pill form of marijuana may work just as well to relieve pain as the smoked form of cannabis, but with fewer side effects and a longer duration, reports Rachael Rettner at MyHealthNewsDaily.

In the study, people who either smoked cannabis or took the pharmaceutical drug dronabinol (also known by the brand name Marinol) -- a pill containing a synthetic form of THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana -- were able to hold their hands in ice water for longer than participants who took a placebo.

The pain-reducing effect of the dronabinol lasted longer than that of smoking marijuana, according to the researchers. While smoking pot reduced pain sensitivity for about 2.5 hours, taking the dronabinol pill continued to reduce pain for about 4.5 hours.

However, the analgesic effects of the pill took about an hour to kick in, while the pain-relieving effects of smoked marijuana start almost immediately. Patients also report they can control their dosage more precisely by titrating the dose with smoking.

"Smoking anything presents certain health risks," according to study researcher Ziva Cooper, assistant professor of clinical neurobiology at Columbia University's Department of Psychiatry (though she may want to familiarize herself with the work of Dr. Donald Tashkin at UCLA, which found that smoking cannabis is not linked to breathing problems, and may in fact help the lungs).

The new findings suggest that a marijuana pill "can produce analgesic effects for longer without the health risks that come along with smoking," according to Cooper.

One can only speculate the pain-reducing effects that might have shown up if the researchers had used cannabidiol (CBD), either alone or in conjunction with THC (the cannabinoids have synergistic effects on pain).

Or -- imagine this! -- using a full-plant cannabinoid extract, utilizing the entire rich symphony of phytocannabinoids found in the marijuana plant, for maximum health benefits. Fresh or dried cannabis flowers, of course, also work.

Tellingly, study participants found the effects of dronabinol less pleasurable than smoking marijuana, "indicating the pill has less potential for abuse," Cooper said (here's where a possible government/corporate agenda comes to the surface again; what these folks do not realize is that the high is part of the healing).

Because the study involved healthy people, it's not clear if patients who suffer from chronic pain would experience the same effects from the pill, according to the researchers.

In addition, the study involved a small sample of just 30 people, and it involved regular marijuana users who smoke pot daily. It's not clear if the results would apply equally to people who don't regularly use cannabis.

The research gives "additional evidence to suggest that both marijuana and dronabinol can be somewhat effective in relieving pain," said Dr. John Roberts, an oncologist at the Yale School of Medicine, who was not involved in the new study but has done research on the effects of THC on pain.

Roberts said there might be a role for each form of marijuana in pain relief, depending on the patient's preferences.

For instance, some patients may say they prefer smoking cannabis because it both reduces their pain and gives them a subjective high. The issue of whether to "allow" patients to use "potentially addictive drugs" (ones they enjoy using) is a question for public policy, Roberts said.

The new study is published in the April 22 issue of the journal Neuropsychopharmacology.


http://www.hemp.org/news/content/us-marijuana-pill-may-be-better-pain-smoked-form-study-finds