Key Ingredient Staves Off Marijuana Memory Loss

[MedicalNeed]

Smoking cannabis has long been associated with poor short-term memory, but a study now suggests that the strain of cannabis makes all the difference. In a test of short-term memory skills, only users of 'skunk'-type strains exhibited impaired recall when intoxicated, whereas people who smoked hashish or herbal cannabis blends performed equally well whether they were stoned or sober.

The findings suggest that an ingredient more plentiful in some types of marijuana than in others may help to reduce the memory loss that some users suffer.

The key difference between the types of cannabis is the ratio of two chemicals found in all strains. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the primary active ingredient, and is responsible for the effects associated with the classic 'high', including euphoria and giddiness but also anxiety and paranoia. The second chemical, cannabidiol, has more calming effects, and brain-imaging studies have shown that it can block the psychosis-inducing effects of THC2. Skunk-type strains of cannabis contain a higher ratio of THC to cannabidiol than do hashish or herbal types.

Valerie Curran, a psychopharmacologist from University College London who led the latest study, says that if habitual users must partake they should be encouraged to use strains with higher levels of cannabidiol, rather than using skunk. She also argues that studying cannabidiol could provide insight into the mechanics of memory formation, and that it may have therapeutic benefits for disorders involving memory deficits. The findings are published in the British Journal of Psychiatry today1.

Cannabis use has increased in recent years — almost as many 16–24-year-olds in the United Kingdom have tried as haven't, according to the 2008 report Statistics on Drug Misuse by the National Health Service — and concerns have been raised that increased levels of THC in 'skunk' varieties owing to agressive plant breeding over the past decade are responsible for a rise in the number of young users displaying mild-to-severe cognitive impairment. However, links to a possible higher incidence and earlier onset of psychotic conditions such as schizophrenia remain controversial, as do associations with long-term psychological problems. Researchers suspect any effects of the drug on mental health could be a result of an increased ratio of THC to cannabidiol in cannabis, because levels of cannabidiol have not kept pace with rising THC concentrations.

Total recall

To test this hypothesis, Curran and her colleagues travelled to the homes of 134 volunteers, where the subjects got high on their own supply before completing a battery of psychological tests designed to measure anxiety, memory recall and other factors such as verbal fluency when both sober and stoned. The researchers then took a portion of the stash back to their laboratory to test how much THC and cannabidiol it contained.

The subjects were divided into groups of high (samples containing more than 0.75% cannabidiol) and low (less than 0.14%) cannabidiol exposure, and the data were filtered so that their THC levels were constant. Analysis showed that participants who had smoked cannabis low in cannabidiol were significantly worse at recalling text than they were when not intoxicated. Those who smoked cannabis high in cannabidiol showed no such impairment.

The results suggest that cannabidiol can mitigate THC's interference with memory formation. This is the first study in human to show such effects. One previous study, led by Aaron Ilan, a cognitive neuroscientist at the San Francisco Brain Research Institute in California, failed to find variations in cognitive effects with varying concentrations of cannabidiol3.

Ilan attributes the positive finding of Curran and her team to their more powerful methodology in analysing subjects' own smoking preferences. In the United States, government policy dictates that only marijuana provided by the National Institute on Drug Abuse can be used for research — and it "is notorious for being low in THC and of poor quality", says Ilan.

Lester Grinspoon, professor emeritus of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachussetts, who has studied the effects of marijuana on patients since 1967, says that Curran's study is important. "Cannabis with high cannabidiol levels will make a more appealing option for anti-pain, anti-anxiety and anti-spasm treatments, because they can be delivered without causing disconcerting euphoria," he says.

*
References
1. Curran, V. et al. Br. J. Psychiat. 197, 285-290 (2010).
2. Bhattacharyya, S. et al. Neuropsychopharmacology 35, 764-774 (2010) .
3. Ilan, A. B. , Gevins, A. , Coleman, M. , ElSohly, M. A. & de Wit, H. Behav. Pharmacol. 16, 487-496 (2005).


NewsHawk: MedicalNeed:420 MAGAZINE
Source:nature.com
Author: Arran Frood
Contact: Contact : About NPG
Copyright: 2010 Nature Publishing Group, a division of Macmillan Publishers Limited.
Website:Key ingredient staves off marijuana memory loss : Nature News

 

[Oddnonsmoker]

In a test of short-term memory skills, only users of 'skunk'-type strains exhibited impaired recall when intoxicated, whereas people who smoked hashish or herbal cannabis blends performed equally well whether they were stoned or sober.

This summary means little to nothing. What exactly constitutes an "herbal cannabis blend?" "Hashish" can be made from any strain. Also, the news media has been calling any potent pot "skunk" for a while now regardless of the strain simply because it sounds more sensational.

Now, I could give them a little more credit if they'd made the distinction between indica and sativa types, which are a little bit less ambiguous and more consistent with the researchers' findings. (IIRC, indica strains have a higher CBD:THC ratio than sativas.)

Terminology aside, the findings give a little more credit to the opinion that pure synthetic THC (in the form of Marinol) is less effective and more harmful than whole cannabis.

 

[MedicalNeed]

Hash is usually made from many different strains and fields of Cannabis (exept water extract hash) with the old hit and pound method in most other countries.
So in effect the more different Cannabiods= more Medicine.

When the levels of THC and CBD's are equal or close they cancel out the THCs high to a point, ie the THC seems stronger because the CBD's are NOT present to calm the THC's effects.

So more different cannabiods of the 64 different ones known at this time makes for a greater Medicinal effect, so this proves Synthetic THC is Crap.

This area of study is the mere tip of the iceberg.
The combination of Cannabis and other meds WILL be found to have a synergistic effect enabling smaller doses of them both. Which people are all ready reporting with their opioid based meds combined with Cannabis.


I can only imagine the profound stats of the studies to come, then the filing of MANY lawsuits against the Federal Government for the deinal of such treatment, which compounded with the threat of arrest will result in a public apology or a MASSIVE payout, or both.

 

[DrProfessor]

Definatly sounds fishy BUT then what doesn't with the FEDS injecting poor sick Guatemalans with Std's, poring LSD in the water supply in the 60's in Europe..(LSD without your approval would suck a bit if you didn't know and they did it over months and months). I'm sure there is a shit pile that would never end WHY, there has to be a reason with cannabis I swear these fools know something it has to be a conspiracy because how can any one be that dumb?

Very interesting indeed I truly believe somewhere in the Cannabis plant is if not a cure a very powerful medicine against Cancer.....and they have been keeping it from us for years. Or it could just be that the Feds are dumb...ahhh shit better check my water!

 

[Purple Goose]

I kinda believe this one they may have used skunk as the name and got the information from there volunteers so when asked what is this strain oh its skunk from the less informed and the more informed conniseur who imho makes up a smaller portion of the smoking community then you would think will say oh its NYCD or SSH etc etc so any strain that has the word skunk is labled in there report, and presently in europe hasnt there been a lot more hysteria saying skunk is far more potent then all other pot so that would be encouragement for any dealer to label any bud that has any bit of a skunky odour skunk. This report would have meant more if they had had enough money to take there volunteers to amsterdam and buy specific strains from coffeeshops who know what they are selling and untill there is some form of legalization and regulation so that growers will have to inform the buyer as to the specific origin and genetics and strain name where applicable all of these so called studies will be suspect but this one at least does tell us more cannabidinol in our bud and the better our memory will be when stoned so if your going out and dont want a cop catching onto the fact your blazed because of the long gaps in your answering time smoke bud with more cannabidinol in it.

 

[medMUser]

Dr. Proff said "Very interesting indeed I truly believe somewhere in the Cannabis plant is if not a cure a very powerful medicine against Cancer.....and they have been keeping it from us for years. "

Dr., you are quite correct. Look for Running From The Cure: The Rick Simpson Story. at YouTube. Rick has been using hash oil with some good reports on cancer & some other ailments.

Rick was on his way, as I understand, to visit Jack Herer before Jack's tragic passing. Rick was diverted by Canadian LEOs who were out to get him for his work with the hash oil.

Running From The Cure is a very informative set of videos.

Also at YouTube there is a video about a lady who did a study on pregnant women in Jamaica who smoked cannabis. The babies & moms were visited a few years later to see how they were doing & how the kids turned out. It's a very revealing piece of work by a brave lady.

YouTube - Marijuana Cannabis Use In Pregnancy Dr. Dreher

mM

 

[Jim Finnel]

Complete Run for the Cure:
RUN FROM THE CURE - The Rick Simpson Story (Parts 1 to 7)

The government has know since the 70's that Cannabis can help fight if not cure cancer and hid the facts. Check this post and you can find lots of Cannabis/Cancer info.

 

[SnowBender]

The government has know since the 70's that Cannabis can help fight if not cure cancer and hid the facts. Check this post and you can find lots of Cannabis/Cancer info.

So when are cancer patients and their families going to file a joint lawsuit against the government and big pharma for killing thousands of innocent victims?

 

[MedicalNeed]

There was an interesting article yesterday at NYU's Scienceline called "What's in Your Weed?"

The original address was What's in Your Weed? » Scienceline but that page is no longer available.

Basically, the article discussed the notion of the importance of CBD's to the positive value of marijuana – an issue I've been very interested in seeing researched further. Unfortunately, criminalization has meant that the content of marijuana has been pushed toward higher THC without regard to CBD's and their value.

The article reported on a recent study by Valerie Curran that compared marijuana users based on the content of their pot.

It turned out the kids smoking weed containing lots of the chemical cannabidiol (CBD) could remember details of the story just as well stoned as sober. Meanwhile, those smoking the low-CBD marijuana fit the stereotype of the forgetful pothead.

The findings fit into a growing library of data demonstrating the possible health benefits of CBD, which is naturally found in marijuana. CBD appears to fend off cancerous tumors, prevent diabetes and epileptic seizures, and protect nerve cells from degradation. It doesn't combat the effects of THC, the ingredient in marijuana that causes a "high," and can even prevent anxiety.

I don't know why the article is no longer there, and I've written them to ask. Perhaps there was some item that they wanted to research further before printing.

Until I hear, I'll assume they lost it, and provide the following as a public service to help them out.

What's in Your Weed?

When Valerie Curran asked college students to put her in touch with their doobie-smoking friends, she was being serious.

Curran is neither a drug dealer nor abuser, but she does tote a license to carry marijuana. She is a scientist at University College London, where she's studying the impact of drugs on memory. Her most recent research explored marijuana use in a naturalistic setting: college-aged kids, in their own homes, smoking from their own stashes.

That may sound controversial, but Curran has a pragmatic outlook on illegal drug use: "Cannabis is the world's most popular illegal substance," she said. "If people are going to use it, they should be safe and we should know the possible impacts."

In fact, as the scientific studies about marijuana accumulate, it's getting harder to understand why the substance remains illicit, said Paul Armentano, deputy director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws in Washington, D.C.

Curran's study, published in the British Journal of Psychiatry in October, tested each of its 134 participants on two separate days – once when they were sober and once when they were stoned. On both days, she read them a short passage and tested their memory of its content immediately after hearing it, and again 30 to 40 minutes later. Then she took a sample of their marijuana to test in the lab later.

It turned out the kids smoking weed containing lots of the chemical cannabidiol (CBD) could remember details of the story just as well stoned as sober. Meanwhile, those smoking the low-CBD marijuana fit the stereotype of the forgetful pothead.

The findings fit into a growing library of data demonstrating the possible health benefits of CBD, which is naturally found in marijuana. CBD appears to fend off cancerous tumors, prevent diabetes and epileptic seizures, and protect nerve cells from degradation. It doesn't combat the effects of THC, the ingredient in marijuana that causes a "high," and can even prevent anxiety. On top of all that, Curran's preliminary research suggests that CBD can help prevent marijuana users from becoming addicted to the substance.

"CBD has a vast array of potential therapeutic properties," said Armentano. "We don't have conventional medicine on the market right now that can yield these responses."

But what worries Curran is that recreational users in Europe and America smoke marijuana that's increasingly low in CBD, at the expense of their health and possibly their own smoking preference; seventy-five percent of the study's participants smoked strains with high THC and low CBD, but only 34% said it was their favorite type of weed. "Experienced users probably prefer high CBD, but they can't get it," said Curran, pointing out CBD's anti-anxiety properties.

Leslie King, a forensic scientist and consultant for the United Kingdom's Department of Health, speculates that this pattern is supply-driven: the threat of fines and jail-time for marijuana possession drives dealers to grow their product instead of import it. And as they breed the plants with the sole aim of increasing THC levels, CBD falls by the wayside simply due to chance, he surmises.

Strains with high THC and high CBD do exist, but recreational users have no way of knowing the CBD content of their weed – you can't see it, smell it, or taste it.

In California, where medical marijuana is legal, analytics labs like Steep Hill and Rm3 test patients' marijuana samples for their THC and CBD content, but only for medical purposes, and only in California.

ProjectCBD, a group that promotes research on the medical utility of CBD, and the San Francisco Patient and Resource Center, a medical marijuana supplier, provide the THC and CBD levels of several strains of cannabis on their websites. This information has limited applicability, however, since what passes for "Purple Diesel" in Los Angeles isn't necessarily the same weed as "Purple Diesel" in San Francisco, let alone New York.

Although standardization cannot be achieved on the black market, it could be if marijuana were legalized, said Tom Angell, spokesman for Yes on Prop 19, an organization advocating the legalization and taxation of marijuana in California. As evidence he cites the labs testing for potency, mold, contaminants, and CBD content that sprang up once California legalized medical marijuana.

Armentano has no doubt that standardization and labeling would become regular practice if recreational marijuana were legalized.

"What if every time you bought a can of beer you had no idea how drunk it was going to get you?" he asked. "I think all consumers want to know what's in the products they're using." Proper labeling is essential to protect consumers and allow them to make informed choices, he added.

"We definitely can't have that right now, under Prohibition," Angell points out. "We leave all that up to the gangs and the drug cartels."

Even if legalization and standardization for recreational use would make marijuana safer, Angell and Armentano agree that it's not likely to happen anytime soon. Organizations like Nip It In The Bud and the League Against Intoxicants are opposed to marijuana legalization under any circumstances, and the federal government still classifies marijuana as a Schedule I Controlled Substance, meaning it's considered to have no potential medical use.

When asked to comment on whether legalization could potentially lead to standardization for optimal health and safety, a public affairs officer for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration simply reiterated that "scientific studies have never established that marijuana can be used safely and effectively for the treatment of any disease or condition."

Others disagree about what the science says. "We know it has medical benefits," said Peter Clark, a bioethicist at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia. "The issue now is legal and political."

And despite indications that CBD has a slew of potential health benefits on its own, doesn't impact mood, doesn't cause intoxication, and has a lower risk of overdose than ibuprofen, only a handful of researchers in the United States can acquire permission to work with the substance. This is simply because of its association with the marijuana plant, said Armentano. He hopes policies and attitudes will change as we continue learning about marijuana and CBD from studies like Curran's, which are carried out in other countries.

"Unfortunately," he added, "in the United States especially, I don't think science drives public policy."


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Source: cannabis.mensnewsdaily.com
Contact: MND's Cannabis Liberty | Legalize it. Tax it. Regulate it. Get over it.
Copyright:2010 MND's Cannabis Liberty
Website:What

 

[Jim Finnel]

So when are cancer patients and their families going to file a joint lawsuit against the government and big pharma for killing thousands of innocent victims?

Good question. My sister died yesterday from a brain tumor.