Marijuana is the most widely used illegal drug in the world which
psychoactive and physiological effects include heightened mood or euphoria,
relaxation and an increase in appetite. Unwanted side-effects can sometimes
include a decrease in short-term memory, dry mouth, impaired motor skills,
reddening of the eyes and feelings of paranoia or anxiety. Marijuana is one of
the most controversial drugs because no fatal overdose case has ever been
recorded and Scientists do not even know
its long term effects on the body. Just hours as I write this, Minnesota has
become the next state in USA to legalize medical marijuana. The feeling of
increased appetite after using cannabis has been documented for hundreds of
years. This is often called "the munchies." It is only recently that
any scientific research has been conducted to understand why cannabis use has
this effect.
The first human studies confirming that increased appetite,
particularly the craving of sweet food, actually correlated with cannabis use
were conducted in the early 1970s.
Research conducted since has confirmed that marijuana increases both the
desire to eat and the palatability of food (Kirkham TC, 2009)
US National library of Health (pubmed.gov) conducted a
research with six adult male volunteers, Two cigarettes containing active
marijuana (2.3% delta 9 THC) or placebo were smoked during both the private
work period and the period of access to social activities. Smoked active
marijuana significantly increased total daily caloric intake by 40%. Increased
food intake was evident during both private and social periods. The increase in
caloric intake was due to an increased consumption of snack foods as a
consequence of an increase in the number of snacking occasions. There was no
significant change in caloric consumption during meals. The principal increase
within the category of snack foods was in the intake of sweet solid items,
e.g., candy bars, compared to sweet fluid, e.g., soda, or savory solid items,
e.g., potato chips. Increases in body weight during periods of active marijuana
smoking were greater than predicted by caloric intake alone.
The therapeutic uses of cannabinoids have been investigated
following observed increases in appetite and body weight in a number of human
studies. Subsequently, marijuana (both illicit and synthetic preparations) has
been used successfully to control wasting syndrome in patients with AIDS and
cancer. The role of cannabis and endocannabinoids in appetite regulation has
been extensively studied, but the association of cannabis use with weight in
the general population is less known.
I have had close friends who have smoked marijuana and one
of the effects I normally heard from them was a series of ‘hunger pangs’ (am
translating that to heightened appetite) even after having taken heavy meals. For
people who suffer from muscle wastages (emaciation) due to very serious medical
conditions, doctors are now prescribing medical marijuana to ease pain, decrease
nausea, avoid vomiting and most important of all, induce appetite. Just recently
President Obama said on national television, that he would prefer his daughters
to use pot, rather than using alcohol. What more has America learnt about weed
that we don’t know… lemmi just ask….
Could medical Marijuana
be the wonder plant of the century when it comes to weight gain?
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