Cannabis – also known as marijuana – is an ancient medicinal plant with promising new medical applications. Nancy Honey/Image Source via Getty Images ( MENAFN – The Conversation) The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency announced in late April 2024 that it plans to ease federal restrictions on cannabis , reclassifying it from a Schedule I drug to the less restricted Schedule III, which includes drugs such as Tylenol with codeine, testosterone and other anabolic steroids . This historic shift signals an acknowledgment of the promising medicinal value of cannabis .
The move comes in tandem with growing interest in the use of psilocybin, the active component in magic mushrooms, for treatment of depression , chronic pain and other conditions . In 2018 and 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted a breakthrough therapy designation to psilocybin , meant to expedite drug development given that preliminary studies suggest it may have substantial therapeutic value over currently available therapies for treatment-resistant depression and major depressive disorder .
Both of these developments represent a dramatic change from long-standing federal policy around these substances that has historically criminalized their use and blocked or delayed research efforts into their therapeutic potential.
As an assistant professor of anesthesiology and a pain researcher, I study alternative pain management options , including cannabis and psychedelics.
I also have a personal stake in improving chronic pain treatment: In early 2009 I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia , a condition characterized by widespread pain throughout the body, sleep disturbances and generalized sensory sensitivity.
I see cannabis and psilocybin as promising therapies that can contribute to bridging that need. Given that an estimated 50 million Americans have chronic pain – meaning pain that persists for three months or more – I want to help understand how to effectively use cannabis and psilocybin as potential tools for pain management.
Cannabis has been listed as a Schedule I drug, which includes dangerous drugs such as heroin and LSD, for more than 50 years. Cannabis versus other pain medications
Cannabis , also known as marijuana, is an ancient medicinal plant. Cannabis-based medicines have been used for at least 5,000 years for […]
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