Benefits of Marijuana for Asthma

As the use of medical marijuana has become legal in the majority of states, almost everyone is seeking it as a potential treatment for their respective health conditions. Access to medical marijuana is becoming easier as telemedicine has become a reliable source of getting doctor’s recommendations. Even if the California state allows recreational use of marijuana, the demand for medical marijuana has certainly not witnessed any notable downfall in the county. However, there have been certain changes in laws that have made it necessary to have a medical marijuana card in Santa Clara. The same trend is expected in other states and counties as well.

Medical marijuana, as the research suggests, has a myriad of benefits because of the medicinal properties the cannabinoids of the plant have. But because smoking marijuana has similar side effects as smoking in general, its benefits for asthma are questionable.

What Is Marijuana?

Marijuana or cannabis is a plant generally known as a drug because of its psychoactive properties. Interchangeably known as weed, the plant is considered illegal federally as the FDA listed it as a schedule 1 drug, similar to meth. However, marijuana does not have just psychoactive properties. It has hundreds of cannabinoids that can offer medicinal, therapeutic effects as well. States recognized the benefits and medicinal properties of the plant and hence decided to legalize the use of marijuana for medical purposes despite it still being federally illegal. Marijuana then got widely accepted as medical marijuana as it was being used for medical purposes only. Medical marijuana is considered better than regular or recreational marijuana as it is often grown under supervision, precisely for patients, thus it has better quality, high potency, and a wide variety of strains.

Is It Safe and Beneficial for Asthma?

Medical marijuana has cannabinoids that are known for their anti-inflammatory properties and since asthma is a condition that is caused by inflammation of the airways, it was wondered if marijuana could treat asthma as well as it does in other conditions. Simultaneously, since it is presumed that marijuana can only be consumed by smoking, it is believed that marijuana can rather trigger asthma attacks, making the condition even worse.

Both the statements are pretty much correct and thus there was space for a debate regarding the benefits and effects of marijuana for treating asthma.

There has been researching going on regarding the effects of marijuana and rather than considering the effects of smoking marijuana, the focus is on the effects of consuming the cannabinoids of the plant. The study and research are limited but it supports the use of marijuana as a supplement and claims that short-term medicinal use of marijuana may not harm the lungs.

The negative effects of tobacco smoke are already established and even marijuana smoking is considered harmful, even if not as harmful as mocking tobacco, it is suggested to avoid smoking if an individual is already suffering from lung conditions such as asthma. However, the use of marijuana in other forms is not found as harmful and thus has the potential to cure or at least reduce inflammation and pain.

Different Forms of Marijuana

It is often believed that consuming marijuana is basically smoking the plant. That is fortunately not the case. There are a number of ways in which the cannabinoids of the plant can be consumed without smoking or consuming the whole plant. Marijuana can be ingested orally and sublingually. Different ways to consume medical marijuana for asthma and other lung conditions. Products that have high cannabidiol (CBD) concentration are considered better as CBD is the nonpsychoactive cannabinoid that has the medicinal properties of the marijuana plant.

It is highly recommended that the individual with any lung condition consult a doctor and consider their advice before choosing marijuana as a potential treatment.