In Part I, we discussed the misclassification of cannabis as a Schedule I drug, an error that should be corrected for truth, accuracy, and social justice, as well as to ensure availability for those in need of the health, medical, and other therapeutic benefits cannabis offers.
The more we objectively study this unique plant, the more health/wellness benefits are being discovered, one of which is helping to manage the rigors of drug and alcohol addiction, which is among our most serious social/health issues, with costs to healthcare/society overall for tobacco, alcohol, illicit drugs, and prescription opioids in the U.S. topping over 193 billion in 2021 for “illicit drugs,” 78 billion for prescription opioids, 250 billion for alcohol, and 300 billion for tobacco use.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics estimated 100,306 drug overdose deaths in the U.S. in 2021, up 28.5% from the prior year. Overdose deaths from opioids, as well as synthetic versions such as fentanyl, and psychostimulants like methamphetamine also spiked in 2021, along with fatalities from cocaine and prescription pain medication.
Conversely, there are zero recorded deaths linked directly to cannabis. A 2014 study in the medical journal Forensic Science International reported two cases of sudden death that doctors attributed to “complications possibly worsened by cannabis use.” The report indicated that before these deaths─which were likely due to pre-existing cardiovascular risk factors─the researchers were not aware of any other deaths related to marijuana use alone.
According to an April 2022 report in Scientific American, “Our current drug policy regarding marijuana, when compared to laws for alcohol and tobacco, makes little sense. Cannabis rarely ever kills someone, unlike alcohol and other drugs. And deaths from the latter two are rising. We think that the individual choice and freedom that stem from a more liberal cannabis policy can contribute to the common good.”
All this is not to say that cannabis, if misused, has no potential for harm, which is the case for any medicinal compound. In 2021, the journal Nature Reviews. Disease Primers stated that cannabis use disorder (CUD) is a documented risk that affects 10% of the 193 million cannabis users worldwide, which only underscores the need for education about safe, appropriate usage.
So, how can cannabis help reduce the hazards of drug and alcohol addiction, as suggested above? The use of cannabis as an “exit drug” is intriguing. Since cannabinoids communicate with other receptors in the body, including opioid receptors, they can theoretically reduce or replace dangerous narcotics. For many patients, gradually tapering off opioids/opiates while incorporating cannabis offers the best outcome.
Cannabidiol (CBD) may help ease anxiety and cravings, as serotonin-receptor agonists can help mediate addiction and repair addiction-related serotonin dysfunction. Not only can cannabis aid in safe drug and alcohol withdrawal, but it can also help prevent addiction in the first place, especially in the case of pain-relieving narcotics such as opioids/opiates, by rendering them unnecessary in the face of a far safer, more sustainable alternative.
We must address the catastrophic U.S. opioid epidemic, which, in fact, should never have occurred in the first place. In the late 1990s, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services report entitled “What is the U.S. Opioid Epidemic?” pharmaceutical companies reassured the medical community that patients would not become addicted to opioid pain relievers. Healthcare providers, thus assured, began to prescribe them at greater rates, consequentially leading to misuse of both prescription and non-prescription opioids, and the skyrocketing addiction/fatality statistics listed above.
Meanwhile, The National Academies of Science and Medicine has confirmed the efficacy of cannabis for chronic pain in adults in an exhaustive review. When given safe access to cannabis, study participants decreased their use of opioids for chronic pain by 40–60%, reporting a better outcome/quality of life with cannabis use by comparison to narcotics.
The 2016 COMPASS study in the Canadian Medical Association Journal also confirms that cannabis is a safer alternative to narcotics such as opiates, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), and alcohol.
Harm reduction experts have expressed concerns that we are jeopardizing patient health by requiring a much higher standard for the prescribing of cannabis over opioids. While research continues, cannabis offers medically-sound aid in the safe withdrawal from opiates/opioids, alcohol, amphetamines, benzodiazepines, and barbiturates.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is now funding projects investigating the use of synthetic THC as well as cannabidiol for the treatment of addiction and relapse prevention. How about preventing narcotic dependency altogether? The informed use of cannabis for chronic pain is medically superior to highly addictive opioid-based drugs (e.g., oxycodone, hydrocodone) for several reasons:
- Cannabinoid receptors are located in the same brain vicinity as opioid receptors.
- Cannabinoid receptors “talk” to and influence opioid receptors, reducing pain signals traveling to the affected areas.
- CBD has been shown to reduce anxiety in various medical studies.
- Both tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and CBD can reduce addiction cravings.
- THC and cannabinol (CBN) can be useful for treating insomnia.
- THC can reduce nausea and normalize appetite.
According to experts such as Thaddeus Camlin, PsyD, of Practical Recovery, “For those opposed to legalizing cannabis, ‘cannabis-induced psychosis’ and ‘ultra-high potency THC products’ are the buzz words used most effectively to enliven the embers of cultural pot fears.” Cannabis-induced psychosis is certainly something to take seriously, as are ultra-high potency THC products, but all this only accentuates the need for safe, legal, informed access.
Reputable dispensaries offering cannabis-based medicine to adults over 21 is arguably our best safeguard against misuse. Synchronicity Holistic, based in Carmel, is a case in point, as it emphasizes education, maintaining an outreach program to provide the most advanced information for medicinal cannabis therapies for ailments such as cancer, anorexia, AIDS, chronic pain, cachexia, persistent muscle spasms, seizures, severe nausea, glaucoma, arthritis, migraines, and other chronic health issues. Synchronicity Holistic staff includes a pharmacist, nurses, and patient educators advocating for safe, informed cannabis applications, a model all dispensaries would be wise to emulate.
Cannabis legalization would also facilitate proper study of CBD, a non-addictive compound with no psychoactive component which has been shown to have antiseizure, antianxiety, and antipsychotic properties. Up to this point, such vital research has been stunted by CBDs inappropriately criminalized status.
The question for voters this November will be whether it is in our collective best interests to continue blocking the establishment of reputable dispensaries in Pacific Grove. Expanding informed access to medical cannabis potentially offers far more benefits than problems, and not just due to huge tax revenues, but more importantly, by offering safe, effective therapies for a those of us concerned with living not just long, but well. Education is the key, and, as always, knowledge is power.