I’m no dope, but I do use medicinal cannabis

The last 12 months have seen the availability of medicinal cannabis in health shops and some pharmacies, which can be bought without prescription. This despite any clear ruling from Minister for Health Simon Harris and general practitioners divided on the issue of the health benefits of such.

The push for greater access to cannabis-based medical products is now a visible one, as evident by the debates last week on a number of radio stations.
Let’s clarify something: The medicinal cannabis openly available the past year – and in vape shops too – is what is called cannabidiol or CBD oil, and is not to be confused with recreational cannabis that gets people ‘high’. In the marijuana plant or cannabis resin there are numerous ingredients but the main ‘cannabinoids’ found to have therapeutic benefits are delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD). Claims that a number of other cannabinoids have therapeutic properties have not yet been proven.

The main difference between the two cannabinoids is that THC has strong psychoactive effects, getting a person ‘stoned’, whereas CBD is thought to have an anti-psychoactive effect that controls or moderates the ‘high’ caused by THC. The latter has also been found to have analgesic, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. The use of the THC variety for recreational purposes is today largely tolerated in many countries, and even in Ireland attitudes to it have become somewhat relaxed the last couple of years.
Access to the THC varietal as a medicine is now allowed, and the plant cultivated, in the Netherlands, Australia, Israel, Canada and 28 states in the US, while Germany and Switzerland allow it to be imported from the Netherlands for medicinal use. The drug’s use for recreation and/or medicine has been heavily debated by the Government here and across the water the last few years. The jury, however, is still out in both jurisdictions.
But back to CBD oil, the one that doesn’t get you ‘stoned’, where research is continuing into its potential to treat epilepsy, schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders, type 2 diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, some tumours, and drug dependency.
While access to CBD oil is becoming easier, there is still confusion among the public about its legality and dispute among doctors about its effectiveness. There is also a lack of oversight on the products that are on sale leading to doubts about their content reliability. With hospital over-crowding and the cervical smear scandal largely preoccupying Minister Harris, marijuana as a medicine has taken a back seat.
When I was a young foreign correspondent in Africa 40 years ago, I had a bad throw from a horse while riding in the bush and it was a miracle I didn’t end up with a broken back. The last decade or so – it’s an age thing – I suffer, every other day, from chronic pain across the top of my back. An arthritis of sorts, it can be quite debilitating and is, I was professionally told, most likely a result of that horse throw. Some years ago, a MRA scan showed I also have a trapped nerve at the top of my spine.

Just four months ago, I started taking a tablet or two daily of Turmeric, the spice that gives curry its yellow colour. It, and especially its most active compound, Curcumin, have many scientifically proven health benefits, such as the potential to prevent heart disease, Alzheimer’s and cancer. It’s a potent anti-inflammatory and antioxidant and may also help improve symptoms of arthritis. In my case, I have been pain free since taking my daily dose. Somewhat ironically, a dear friend had told me she used Turmeric as a rub for her retired show horses who, with age, had developed arthritis in their legs.
I have always been a light sleeper, four or five hours sufficing, but the past year have suffered with insomnia. The last couple of months it has become chronic, often going two nights in a row without sleep – this column sometimes written in the wee small hours – until a night on the beer brings peace of mind the third night.

My youngest son suggested CBD oil, a few drops under the tongue at bedtime. The last three weeks I have slept like a baby.
When I was a child and got stung by a nettle, I used a dock-leaf to ease the sting. Turmeric is a plant. Marijuana is a plant. And Mother Nature’s wonderful...