30,000 Papers on Cannabis Published By Scientists in Last Decade

The wave of legalization that has swept the United States over the past decade has coincided with a surge in published research on cannabis.

That's the discovery that was unearthed. Marijuana advocacy group NORML made the announcement this week.

Citing the results of a keyword search on the National Library of Medicine/PubMed.gov website, normal stated that for the third year in a row, “researchers around the world have published more than 4,000 scientific papers dedicated to cannabis, its active ingredients, and its effects.”

“Over the past decade, scientific research on the cannabis plant has increased dramatically, with researchers publishing more than 32,000 scientific papers on cannabis since the beginning of 2013. Much of this increase is due to researchers is the result of a new focus on marijuana research.'' In addition to therapeutic work, we also conduct research on the real-world impact of legalization laws. ” NORML said.

According to NORML, “More than 70 percent of all peer-reviewed scientific papers on marijuana have been published in the past 10 years, and more than 90 percent of this literature has been published since 2002.”

“As of this writing, PubMed.gov cites more than 45,900 scientific articles on marijuana dating back to 1840. PubMed has been online since 1996 and is a search engine for biomedical and life sciences literature. and free resources to support your search.'' Added organization.

NORML Deputy Director Paul Armentano Said The findings refute critics who say there is insufficient research on cannabis.

“Despite some claims that marijuana has not yet received sufficient scientific scrutiny, scientists' interest in cannabis research has sharply increased in recent years, and research has focused on understanding the cannabis plant, its active ingredients, its mechanisms of action, and more. , and our understanding of its impact, both for users and for society.” Armentano said in a statement.. “Politicians and others need to stop evaluating cannabis through the lens of 'what we don't know,' and instead focus on the evidence about marijuana and marijuana reform policy that shows everything we know. It's time to start having a discussion based on this.”

It seems like every week a new study is published about marijuana and its effects on the mind and body. And not all of the findings were in favor of marijuana advocates.

One such study, published last month, found that there is scant evidence that cannabis use helps addicts reduce or stop long-term use of illicit opioids.

The Australian study involved more than 600 heroin addicts and spanned 20 years.

“Although cannabis use is common among people with opioid use disorder, it remains unclear whether cannabis use is associated with increased or decreased illicit opioid use. Previous studies with limited follow-up To overcome the limitations identified in longitudinal studies, the authors examined within-individual interactions between cannabis and heroin use over several follow-up studies over 18 to 20 years. I have written in their introduction.

“After accounting for various demographic variables, other drug use, and mental and physical health indicators, increases in cannabis use from baseline at 24 months were significantly associated with increases in heroin use at 36 months. (estimate = 0.21, SE = 0.10). Furthermore, increases in heroin use at 3 and 24 months were associated with increases in heroin use at 12 months (estimate = -0.27, SE = 0.09) and 36 months (estimate = -0.27, SE = 0.10). “It was significantly associated with decreased cannabis use in months (estimate = -0.22, SE = 0.08). All other cross-lagged associations were not significant,” the researchers said in detailing their findings. Ta.

Although the study found “some evidence of a significant relationship between cannabis and heroin use at early follow-up,” the researchers said it was “sparse and inconsistent across time points.” he pointed out.

“Overall, there was insufficient evidence to suggest a unidirectional or bidirectional relationship between the use of these substances,” they said.

Another study, also published in November, investigated whether cannabis is a hallucinogen. As it turns out, the answer isn't that simple.

“Cannabis and classic psychedelics are controlled substances with emerging evidence of efficacy in the treatment of a variety of mental illnesses. Historically, they have been used in conjunction with classic psychedelic drugs to achieve altered states of consciousness. Cannabis is rarely considered to have psychedelic effects in modern literature, although there are many examples where it has been used. the researchers said.

“Research on the 'psychedelic' effects of cannabis, particularly delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), will help evaluate potential therapeutic indications and elucidate the mechanisms of action of both cannabis and classic psychedelics. This review examines the literature assessing cannabis' ability to produce the perceptual changes, aversion, and mystical experiences commonly associated with classic psychedelics such as psilocybin. are summarized and evaluated. This review also provides a brief contrast of neuroimaging findings related to the acute effects of cannabis and psychedelics. Available evidence suggests that high-THC cannabis may be able to induce psychedelic effects, but these effects have been limited by recent contrasts due to commonly used doses, sets, and settings. It may not have been observed in research studies. ”

They added: “Studies are needed to investigate the effects of high doses of THC in the context of therapeutic research with psychedelics aimed at inducing psychedelic or therapeutic experiences.” If cannabis can reliably produce a psychedelic experience under these circumstances, cannabis treatment with high THC doses should be considered as an adjunctive treatment for mental disorders, and traditional psychedelic medications should be considered. should be considered as an active comparator in clinical trials involving ”