A new study looks at how people with rheumatic diseases, like arthritis, use medical marijuana. It finds that more than 60% of those who used medical weed said they switched from other drugs, like NSAIDs, painkillers, sleep aids, and muscle relaxants. Most of the patients also said that weed helped them cut down on or stop taking their medicines completely.
Medical Marijuana Helps People With Arthritis And Other Rheumatic Conditions Reduce Use Of Opioids And Other Medications, Study Shows
The study, which was released this month by the American College of Rheumatology, says that people switched medications because they had fewer side effects, better control of their symptoms, and worries about withdrawal symptoms. “Substitution was linked to THC use and much greater improvements in pain, sleep, anxiety, and joint stiffness compared to nonsubstitution.”
“An appreciable number of people with rheumatic diseases substitute medications with [medical cannabis] for symptom management,” say the writers from the University of Michigan Medical School, McGill University, and the University of Buffalo.
The study’s data came from an online, private poll of adults in the US and Canada. The survey was promoted on social media and through the Arthritis Foundation and Arthritis Society Canada’s email contact lists.
Out of the 1,727 polls that were filled out, 763 said they were currently using weed, 655 said they had never used marijuana, and 268 said they had used it before but stopped. Only people who said they were currently using weed were looked at by the researchers.
The study says that out of 763 subjects, 62.5% said they used MC goods instead of medicines. These included opioids (48.6%), sleep aids (29.6%), muscle relaxants (25.2%), and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (54.7%).
“The reasons for switching were better management of symptoms and less harm, like fewer side effects.”
About two-thirds of cannabis users “reported a diagnosis of an inflammatory rheumatic disease, and a similar number reported conditions such as fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, and mechanical spinal pain that were present at the same time.”
Among people who used marijuana, “inhalation was the most common method of administration,” which comes with the risks of lung disease and making an inflammatory condition worse. But because breathed MC has a fast metabolic effect, this may be the best way to give it to people who want to feel better quickly, especially with pain.
Also, they said that products with THC were the most popular. They wrote, “It’s possible that some individuals may require cannabis products containing at least some THC for effective pain management, a point that should be explored in future studies.”
It was also found that “more than half of the people who answered this survey used [medical cannabis] at least daily, and those who switched were more likely to be using regularly.” The writers wrote, “This pattern of use supports the idea of daily continuous symptoms that need continuous management.”
It says that there have only been a few research studies that look at MC use among people with rheumatic diseases so far. This group may have special problems because they are older, take a lot of medicines at the same time, and have a lot of symptoms.
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Despite this, more and more studies show that some people with a wide range of illnesses use medical marijuana instead of other drugs.
For example, a recent study in the Journal of Nurse Practitioners showed that people with anxiety, sadness, sleeplessness, and chronic pain who used medical marijuana were less likely to use pharmaceutical drugs and had better health and fewer severe symptoms.
Prescription drug use decreased significantly after medical cannabis use.” “Health characteristics and the severity of symptoms got a lot better after using medical cannabis.”
A different study from last year that looked at more than 500 soldiers found that more than 90% of those who used medical marijuana said it made their lives better. A lot of people also said they used weed instead of prescription or over-the-counter drugs.
Older people who use medical marijuana “experience considerable improvement in health and well-being” and that access to cannabis moderately lowered opioid doses. This is similar to what a number of other studies have found in the past few years.
A new study supported by the federal government earlier this summer found that marijuana helps people with drug abuse problems stay off opioids or cut down on their use, stay in treatment, and deal with withdrawal symptoms.