I'm looking for feedback on this rescent study by McGill University

[MediMJ]

[i]Hello All,

I just wanted to share some welcomed news from brilliant Canadians at the McGill University in Montreal and hopefully get some feedback. This report has been published in the CMAJ (Canadian Medical Assocciation Journal) so we can hope this will bring studies for MMJ and it's benefits/side effects for other medical conditions.[/i]

[quote]August 31, 2010 10:33 AM
Pot, Chronic Pain Relief: New Study Says Marijuana Can Help
Originally Posted by Aina Hunter

(CBS) Light up, medical marijuana enthusiasts. Canadian researchers say that those who suffer from chronic pain may find relief by smoking pot three times a day. They may also sleep better.

In a three-month study which followed 23 patients, researchers tested three strengths of marijuana and a placebo to test the effects of the drug on those with chronic pain who had not responded well to traditional  medications.

They found that those who smoked the strongest cannabis - that with the highest levels of tetrahydrocannabinol, often called THC - experienced the greatest benefit.

Nevertheless, although there was a clear reduction in pain, it was very modest.

These findings are only suggestive, lead researcher Mark Ware of McGill University in Montreal and his colleagues wrote, and need to be confirmed in larger long-term safety and efficacy studies.

The primary side effects of the strongest dose of THC were "headache, dry eyes, burning sensation in areas of neuropathic pain, dizziness, numbness and cough."

The researchers said there was no reduction in mood or quality of life from the treatment.

Read the full study at http://www.cmaj.ca/ (I would have made that a link, but I didn't know how to :) [/quote]

[peekawho]

Jaybay is so right about the stupidity of weed smokers.  I smoked in late high school and first year of college, and probably many people did.   I remember sleeping a lot, and staring at the TV a lot.  And eating a lot.  That's about it.  What an exciting drug.  

I have enough trouble with the Neuronitin making me stupid.  I don't need to add another drug to that!

[Jaybay]

melissakay - yes, medical marijuana is available in pill form by the name of Marinol.  It contains THC which is the active ingredient of the marijuana plant.  Some people swear it only works for pain and/or nausea control when smoked and won't use the legal Marinol for that reason.

I'll admit I tried smoking it myself years ago when I was vomiting several times a day from the worst bowel obstruction I've ever had.  (Lost a couple feet of colon from that event.)  It's an experience I don't care to repeat.  It had zero effect on my nausea and the pain was even worse.  Try aiming for the barf bucket while the room is spinning and a heavy dose of paranoia mixed in just to make it interesting.  Never again!

If people want to smoke the stuff - fine.  Want to legalize it?  Fine.  I really don't care.  But, I don't care to be around them, and believe me I've been around plenty in the motorcycle world.  Stupidity doesn't do anything for me, and every weed user I've been around lives and works only to keep his weed supply steady.  Ever tried to have any kind of a rational conversation with someone stoned on weed?  How stimulating.

You should have seen the panic when the borders were closed for a couple weeks after 9/11.  Think those people gave a dam about those events and thousands of lives lost?  Nope.  They were freaked because their weed supply was gone and the party was off for a couple of weeks.  Chronic pot smokers may be laid back while they're smoking, but take it away and some of them get pretty darn nasty.

[melissaky]

Isn't there a medication that has THC (active ingredient in marijuana ) in it ? I could swear that when my mother-in -law was undergoing chemo for cancer she was taking a med like this for nausea .As far as smoking marijuana I don't but , if it was legal and my Dr prescribed it and said it would kill my pain I would try it .

[JadedSweetheart]

The few times I ever smoked MJ, where before I had CP, so I have no experience there.  Personally, I didn't really like the way it made my respiratory tract feel.  I have heard of THC in pill form, but haven't heard much about how well it works and apparently it's not widely used.

I don't have a problem with anyone smoking pot.  I actually think if they legalized it, they would have more resources to go after the serious drugs such as cocaine and meth. Very few people have overdosed on pot, if any, and it doesn't tend to make people "all jacked up" in a way that would make them commit violent acts the way that cocaine and meth do.  

I think the worst anyone would do on MJ is rob a place for food.. seriously, and that's if they weren't feeling too lazy to do it.  The laziness it can cause really can be a problem with the youth of our country and people in general, however, people who are going to sit around and get high all day, are probably going to do it whether MJ is legal or not.  

Opium was also primarily smoked before they made it into the pain relievers we have today.  I would hope they could make a class of THC based drugs that might be able to help people in the same way.  

I don't want to upset anyone about this, either, just sharing my opinion.

[mummy3too]

Personally, my doctor has told me of the risk's involved with taking medication that could hurt my liver or kidney's over years - and he said we have to weigh the benefits against the risks (just like all medication). I think that smoking marijuana 3x day probably is not the same as a pack a day habit. I know many will argue they do not get a 'stoned' feeling from their pills - I don't think i do either. But maybe you don't get a 'stoned' feeling from the marijuana if you are in that much pain, too.

I don't know - I have never smoked it. I just don't want to judge anyone who has for medical reasons. I have heard that it can also help with chemo in cancer patients. It's really a drug just like we all take - just in a different form.

Again, just want to offer the other side  - not upset anyone.

[Tuckamore]

Jaybay...

....AMEN!! I agree with you 150%

~Tuck

[Jaybay]

I always find it odd that the same "doctors" who promote smoking of marijuana recoil in horror at those who smoke tobacco.  You're still putting heat and pollutants into your lungs so the same risks apply to marijuana as tobacco.  Of course pain is reduced if you smoke weed three times a day - you don't feel much of anything when you're stoned out of your mind.