‘AT LAST! CANNABIS RULES ARE CHANGING’

After stories of epileptic children being denied therapeutic medical cannabis, Dr C is glad doctors can now prescribe it

e’ve missed out on potentially W useful medicines for years because of our prudish attitude towards drugs. So the news that doctors will soon be able to prescribe medicinal cannabis is a real step forward. Recently, young epilepsy sufferers Alfie Dingley and Billy Caldwell made headlines because treatment with medical cannabis improved their health – and there’s more evidence emerging regarding the various benefits.

HALT DISEASE

A review by the British Medical Journal found strong evidence that medicinal cannabis can help delay the progression of Alzheimer’s. And for cancer sufferers, cannabis can help with side-effects like pain and nausea. Israeli research of nearly 3,000 cancer patients looking to overcome sleep problems and pain found that cannabis alleviated both – 95.9% of patients saw an improvement.

PAIN RELIEF

For chronic pain, there’s proof that medicinal cannabis can be effective, and as roughly half the UK population suffer with some form of pain, that’s good news. Until now, we haven’t had many options to help – only painkillers. Trials have also seen dramatic results for Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis and inflammatory bowel disease.

There are two ingredients in the plant that can be extracted: CBD, which helps with anxiety and pain, but has no psychoactive effects, and THC, which gives that “high” but also has beneficial effects. Importantly, CBD also has an anti-psychoactive effect, so it can moderate the THC high. Medical marijuana takes those extracts and makes tablets, oils and sprays – not joints – and it will be strictly regulated.

As with any drug, it has sideeffects, such as being sleepy and losing concentration, but none of those have outweighed the benefits in research. It won’t be the same as the CBD oil you can buy on the shelves, either. To explain: a study that used CBD to reduce anxiety gave people 600mg, but over the counter tablets can have as little as 15mg.

HOPE FOR THE FUTURE

Because cannabis is illegal, people see it as “bad”. Lots of people with conditions like MS have used it illegally to relieve pain. Now they can safely and legally find relief, which is good news. Alfie’s mum Hannah said, “As a family, we were facing his death. Now we are facing his life, full of joy and hope, which I wish for each and every person in this country who could benefit from this medicine.” That says it all.