Many people only consider the recreational side of marijuana, but there is an entirely other side to this plant that treats medical issues in humans (and pets too!). The notion the marijuana is medicinal has been understood since the days of ancient China, and even more recently in the early 1900’s. However, due to prohibition, the idea of cannabis as a medicine was pushed aside by most of society and instead, deemed a dangerous drug. In today’s modern day, we’re able to see the true benefits of this miracle plant, and understand that this plant can help people. For that reason, we wanted to share some of the most common uses for medical marijuana that have been known and proven to provide medical relief.

And while not all of these uses for medical marijuana are extensively backed by science, there are some very common ailments that a large portion of the United States experience every day, and medical marijuana has become a legal way to treat them.

Anxiety

Eighteen percent of Americans suffer from anxiety. It’s a sad truth that has been worsening due to a multitude of societal and environmental reasons, but medical marijuana has been used to treat the anxiousness that many people experience on a daily basis. While much of this is self prescribed, studies have shown that cannabis can help reduce symptoms of anxiety like sleep deprivation.

Headache

It’s reported that people commonly use cannabis for the treatment of headaches and migraines, and there’s even scientific evidence to show that it creates a significant impact in treating migraines.

More so, preclinical studies suggest that the endocannabinoid system role in migraine pathogenesis suggest potential therapeutic value, meaning there is more to be learned about how cannabinoids can affect painful headaches and migraines.

Cancer

One of the most well known uses for medical marijuana is in cancer patients. While studies still need to be enacted to learn if cannabis has a role in curing cancer, cannabis has most commonly been used to treat the nausea associated with chemotherapy, a commonly used practice of curing cancer. It’s been scientifically proven that Delta-9-THC taken by mouth and Oral spray with delta-9-THC and CBD to treat the nausea associated with cancer symptoms.

Seizures

One incredible new discovery is medical marijuana’s use for people who experience seizures. Seizures are usually caused by abnormal electrical activity in the brain and affect millions of people nationwide. For the first time in history, studies have been conducted and have proven with class 1 evidence that CBD improves seizure control when added on to other AEDs in patients.

Weight Gain/Loss

Most people’s first association with recreational cannabis is the “munchies” or the act of getting hungry and eating while you’re in a high state. For this reason alone, we know that cannabis can have an effect on one’s appetite. Because of this, we’re able to consider medical marijuana as a medicine that can be used for those who are struggling with a loss of appetite due to diseases like cancer. But on the flip side, medical marijuana has also been taken to curb appetites and for some acts as an appetite suppressant when pairing with diet and exercise.

In the world of medical marijuana, there are still many unknowns when it comes to the medicinal help that this plant can provide. Scientists need more funding and more access to marijuana in order to be able to run more studies to discover its benefits. But already, we can see that there are plenty of medical uses for marijuana.