We read many news about CBD, which is a cannabinoid that is used to treat anxiety, anger, epilepsy and some studies claim that it helps in the treatment of certain types of cancer. However, THC remains to a certain extent “controversial”.
It seems as CBD is the “useful” cannabinoid and THC just the psychoactive and hallucinogenic drug. Nonetheless, this conclusion is vague and even unfair.
Hemp cannot contain more than 0.3 % of THC to be considered legal under federal law in the US. In other words, CBD starts to be regulated and it is legal in the US, however, THC remains federally illegal. Nonetheless, some THC medicines are FDA approved (marinol, syndros, nabilone, epidiolex).
This article explains the benefits of THC and the benefits of CBD and THC together.
THC and its Recreational Use
Many times, THC has been classified as a recreational drug with no other properties. However, THC has other useful properties besides its psychoactive ones. Moreover, we shouldn’t neglect the recreational properties of THC.
THC is used as a recreational substance that induces states of altered consciousness, enhanced creativity, brotherhood, laughter and sometimes introspection. We perceive sounds, lights and the environment in a different way while we are under the influence of THC. Moreover, we feel lighter and relaxed. THC doesn’t make people violent or aggressive, which is something great if we merely talk about the recreational use of drugs.
Recreational THC: legality
Alcohol is one of the most dangerous drugs with one of the worst withdrawal symptoms: the dangerous and feared ‘delirium tremens’. Alcohol is widely available and even promoted, except for some resistance from prohibitionist parties in the US.
There is a consensus in the acceptance of alcohol in western societies. In other words, alcohol has been so important-and an integral part of our society-that nobody dares to prohibit alcohol.
Why THC is different than alcohol? The truth is we cannot get a logical answer for this question. Nonetheless, some people claim that there is a cultural background. During decades, cannabis was considered a drug of blacks and Mexicans so there was a racist connotation behind the prohibition.
THC remains illegal as a recreational drug with some exceptions such as Canada and Uruguay. However, the term “medical cannabis is ‘accepted’.
My stance on THC is the same as my stance on alcohol. Prohibition seems illogical for a drug that isn’t as harmful as many other legal drugs. For instance, we can mention the opioid crisis in the US or alcohol, both drugs that are much more harmful than THC.
Is it logical that if you are caught with 2 ounces of marijuana in Texas you could end up in jail for up to 6 months and 2000$ fine? It’s absolutely no logical and probably even unethical.
Benefits of THC
As previously mentioned, THC isn’t just a recreational drug, it has many other properties. For example, THC is analgesic, it helps to relax, to treat insomnia, nausea and muscle spasms. Furthermore, it is used to alleviate the side effects of chemotherapy, AIDS or glaucoma.
In addition, the toxicity of smoked marijuana is insignificant. There is no known case of a person who has suffered lethal poisoning by inhalation, a fact that takes a special value considering the huge number of daily users. The same can be said of the digestive tract, where huge amounts (several ounces) are needed to induce deep drowsiness states, which disappear simply by sleeping.
This low toxicity is one of the most interesting features of cannabis. For instance, CBD has been proposed as a substitute for opioids, in part, because of the opioid crisis in the US.
The fact is that we currently have more THC-derived approved drugs than CBD ones. The THC drugs Syndros and dronabinol are used to treat nausea and vomiting mainly for patients under chemotherapy. Marinol is another THC-derived drug to treat nausea and vomiting.
On the other hand, epidiolex is the first CBD-derived drug approved by the FDA. Epidiolex is used to treat epilepsy.
Benefits of THC and CBD Together
Some theories claim that there is synergy between CBD and THC and that they are better if they are combined. This synergy is sometimes defined as “The Entourage Effect”.
It seems as CBD and THC balance each other and this is the main benefit of combining THC and CBD.
For instance, high doses of THC might cause anxiety but if THC and CBD are taken together, this anxiety tends to dissipate.
In addition, it’s kind of moralistic to discard THC as the recreational cannabinoid and meanwhile classify CBD as the medical one. As a matter of fact, things aren’t that simple. This black or white dichotomy is ridiculous when we speak about cannabinoids. THC has also great medical properties and some studies claim that CBD and THC work better together. The benefits of combining THC and CBD seem to work better in the treatment of certain cancers such as breast cancer.
Conclusion: The Benefits of THC and CBD together
CBD is a trend and sometimes we don’t hear that much about the benefits of THC. However, there is not a bad cannabinoid and a good one. Both cannabinoids are useful for medical purposes. In addition, THC is used for its recreational and entheogenic properties.
Some theories claim that there is a synergy between THC and CBD. According to this theory, both cannabinoids balance each other. For instance, CBD reduces the psychotic or anxiety effects that might be caused by THC.
Finally, it’s important to pinpoint that THC isn’t just a recreational drug nor the “bad cannabinoid”, in other words, the health benefits of THC are as important and useful as the health benefits of CBD. Both CBD and THC have great therapeutic properties!