Marijuana Compounds: Highly Beneficial, Yet Illegal

Anthony Gucciardi
Natural Society

Is marijuana bad for you? Marijuana has the potential to get you high: most people know this. And a growing number of people are becoming aware of the medicinal properties of this plant. But, the compounds that make marijuana such a healer are largely unknown to the general public. These compounds won’t get you high, when separated from the psychoactive ingredient known as THC, but they are still classified as being highly dangerous and addictive by the U.S. government.

Cannabidiol (CBD), Cannabinol (CBN), Cannabichromene (CBC), Cannabigerol (CBG), and Tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV) are all active, organic compounds in the marijuana plant—and each offers unique benefits.

Is Marijuana Bad for You?

CBD or cannabidiol is said to be the most-studied cannabinoid. It has potentially therapeutic effects on conditions like diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, cancer, nausea, Parkinson’s, and Alzheimer’s. Martin Lee, of the non-profit group Project CBD, calls cannabidiol the “Cinderella molecule” and the “little substance that could.”

Related Read: Does Marijuana Cause Cancer?

Cannabinol (CBN) is available in marijuana in very small quantities. It is far less researched than CBD, but is said to induce sleep, ease pain and spasticity, increase appetite, reduce the spread of MRSA, and delay the symptoms of Lou Gehrig’s Disease (ALS).

Cannabichromene (CBC) has anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and analgesic benefits. It may “promote anti-cancer activity in malignant cell lines” as well. This also is a relatively under-researched compound.

The other compounds of marijuana show similarly impressive potential benefits and uses. The wealth of information on this compounds is growing each day, though scientists sometimes struggle for funding in the face of the federal government who is committed to criminalizing this healthful plant.

Marijuana’s classification under the Controlled Substances Act is as a Schedule I substance. This places it on the same level as heroin. According to the government, these drugs have no medical uses and high potential for abuse and addiction. Marijuana is considered a very dangerous drug by the government, despite all of the research to the contrary.

But of course marijuana does have medicinal uses. In one case, a young boy’s father actually says marijuana oil is what made his son beat cancer. While the story isn’t recent, it is one that everyone should hear about.

Is marijuana bad for you? Simply recognizing that marijuana compounds have some medical use would reduce the plant from a Schedule I drug to another classification, allowing the medical marijuana trade to flourish freely in the states where voters have worked so hard to get those laws in place. But, the feds refuse to budge, white-knuckling their Drug War in the face of the American people who have spoken out on several occasions in opposition, and in the face of science which clearly says this plant has real, medical applications.

Additional Sources:

AlterNet