Marihuana more researched

Research shows marijuana can be effectively used to treat multiple sclerosis

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Research shows marijuana can be effectively used to treat multiple sclerosis

Posted: 17 Oct 2013 01:52 AM PDT

Israeli researchers have once again confirmed the healing potential of marijuana (cannabis), a natural, medicinal plant loaded with dozens of disease-fighting cannabinoids and other beneficial compounds. A recent announcement by American Friends of Tel Aviv University (AFTAU) explains the findings of a new study published in the Journal of Neuroimmune Pharmacology (JNP), which demonstrates the ability of marijuana to fight multiple sclerosis (MS) without triggering harmful side effects.

An inflammatory disease in which the immune system attacks the central nervous system, MS is a debilitating condition that in more extreme cases can lead to numbness of limbs, loss of vision and even paralysis. Some 2.5 million people worldwide are believed to be suffering from the condition, which has no known or admitted cause, and conventional medicine has thus far been unable to come up with an effective remedy or cure.

But Drs. Ewa Kozela, Ana Juknat, Neta Rimmerman and Zvi Vogel from Tel Aviv University's (TAU) Dr. Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson Center for the Biology of Addictive Diseases and Sackler Faculty of Medicine may have uncovered a potential natural cure for MS: marijuana. Since marijuana contains natural anti-inflammatory compounds that support the body's built-in endocannabinoid system, it is a powerful tool in the fight against a whole host of chronic diseases, including MS.

According to an announcement issued by AFTAU, Dr. Vogel, who helped author the new study, was among the first to identify marijuana cannabinoids, for which there are some 70 different varieties. Among these cannabinoids is cannabidiol, or CBD, which is said to be the most plentiful and potent cannabinoid in marijuana. Cannabinoids in general have been extensively researched by independent scientists in recent years, because they offer incredible medicinal benefits without the "high" produced by tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC.
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