Cannabis may help mental disorders: study

With four states approved recreational use of the drug and four states passed laws regarding medicinal use of marijuana in 2016, the legal access to the weed is growing.

Cannabis contains more than 100 compounds called cannabinoids that can affect body biologically. Cannabis is being presc.ribed for both physical ailments like arthritis, epilepsy and mental health issues like depression, anxiety. Due to lack of research the medicinal role of marijuana is not very clear. Most studies ignore therapeutic potential of the herb and focus on its illicit use. Largely because cannabis is classified as a schedule 1 drug; making it nearly impossible to study.

To assess marijuana’s potential mental health benefits, a team of researchers in USA and Canada conducted a review of published scientific work. Those researchers found an evidence that cannabis can likely benefit people dealing with depression, social anxiety and PTSD, though it may not be ideal for people with bipolar disorder, for instance, for which there appears to be more negative side effects than positive ones.  Their findings published in the journal Clinical Psychology Review.

“This is a substance that has potential use for mental health,” says Zach Walsh, an associate professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia. “We should be looking at it in the same way [as other drugs] and be holding it up to the same standard.”

The under review studies also suggested that cannabis may help in dealing addiction. “We are really excited about the potential substitution effect,” says study author Zach Walsh, an associate professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia. “If people use cannabis as a replacement for opioid medications, or to get off of opioids or cut back, we could see some pretty dramatic public health benefits. The level of opioid overdoses is so high right now.”

Many researchers and medical professionals believe that the classification hampers research and medical potential of cannabis merit further exploration. Legalization would not only eliminate stigma associated with the drug but also pave the way for more and better scientific studies, many research advocates believe.

“I think people will derive more benefit if they can speak more openly with providers about whether they are using cannabis and why,” says Walsh.