Delilah Butterfield
Everyone
knows that smoking is far from the best thing you can do to preserve
lung health. So, why do people use it for asthma? Recently, a cannabis
research company even began recruiting for a study on cannabis for
asthma and COPD. Though it may sound surprising, there are numerous ways
cannabis products may help asthma patients. Here are five things you
didn’t know about cannabis and asthma.
1. Cannabis may help exercise-induced asthma
Researchers have been studying the effects of cannabis for asthma since the 1970s. A 1975 study,
for example, compared the effects of four different treatments in eight
asthmatic patients. The treatments tested were smoked cannabis with 2% THC, aerosolized isoproterenol, aerosolized saline, and a smoked cannabis placebo.
Asthma
attacks were triggered by both exercise and a drug called methacholine,
which is used to test for asthma. Both cannabis treatment and
isoproterenol provided a “prompt correction” to the
asthmatic bronchospasm.
These results were repeated in
exercise-induced asthma. The placebo and the saline produced a 30 to 60
minute recovery time. The cannabis, however, provided immediate relief.
Isoproterenol, a drug more commonly used to treat heart problems,
produced a similar response.
2. Cannabis is a bronchodilator
One year later (1976), another study
found that administering THC through an aerosol container may have
bronchodilatory effects. Ten asthmatic patients were blindly given a
single dose of an aerosol once daily for three consecutive days. The
aerosols contained either a placebo, cannabis, or albuterol, one of the
most common asthma medications.
Both THC and albuterol
successfully improved lung function. Albuterol produced the strongest
reaction the quickest, but the effects of cannabis and albuterol were
the same after one hour. This gives a strong indication that the cannabinoid can act as a powerful bronchodilator.
Though
this trial is quite small, it was double-blinded and randomized. This
makes it a promising clinical example of how THC may be used to treat
asthmatics in the future.
3. Anti-inflammatory agent
Cannabis is well-known for its anti-inflammatory properties.
Studies have found that the herb’s two main active ingredients,
psychoactive THC, and nonpsychoactive CBD have immune-modulating
properties. These inflammation-fighting abilities may be one of the
reasons cannabis is so helpful to asthma patients.
Allergic asthma can cause chronic inflammation
of the airways, hindering the ability to breathe properly. This is due
to an overactive immune response, which may be triggered by some sort of
environmental or dietary trigger.
Numerous studies have shown that the active components in cannabis suppress inflammation and may be useful therapeutic tools to suppress the immune response.
4. Cannabis tinctures can help cough
Surprisingly,
cannabis was once used as a medication for coughs. The excessive
coughing during and after an asthma attack can be damaging and painful
to the throat. Back in the 1920s, when cannabis products were legal for
doctors to prescribe, medical reports
Back in the 1920s, when cannabis products were legal for doctors to prescribe, medical reports claim that cannabis tincture is,
[O]ne of the best additions to cough mixtures that we possess and yet does not constipate or depress the system as does morphine.
The idea that cannabis smoke can be used as an expectorant was also once popular. Though, this claim is controversial today. Hot, ashy cannabis smoke can cause
mucus and other bronchitis symptoms, like cough. This is especially
when smoked without a filter or with a rolling paper. So, those
interested in testing out the herb’s mucus-busting potential may want to
stick to a vape.
So, those interested in testing out the herb’s mucus-busting potential may want to stick to a vape.
5. Cannabis relieves spasms
Cannabis compounds have successfully relieved muscle tension and spasticity in multiple sclerosis patients, which is why a cannabis-based pharmaceutical is now on the market in many countries. However, the herb’s antispasmodic effects may be beneficial for asthma sufferers.
A 2014 study found
that THC and some synthetic cannabinoids successfully prevented airway
spasms. In an organ experiment conducted outside of the human body,
researchers collected bronchi samples from 88 patients. They used
electrical signaling to cause the organ to contract.
The study found that a cannabinoid receptor activated by THC quiets muscle contraction, which may be why smoking cannabis can calm an asthma attack.
Source:http://herb.co/2017/01/11/cannabis-asthama/
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