Cannabis sativa (Marijuana) is an annual plant in the Cannabaceae family which grows wildly, and is undoubtedly, one of the most popular drugs of all time. This plant has very distinctive pointed green leaves with serrated edges and is recognized by millions. When the plant reaches maturity it develops flowers with sticky brown or white hairs and changes its appearance somewhat. However, it is in this part of the Cannabis that the active ingredients are stored. The flowers can have an array of different colors, like red, orange, purple, and gold—but whatever color these flowers are, it doesn’t alter the fact the plant is still highly recognizable.

Brief History of the Hemp Plant

Did you ever wonder where certain names came from? For example Hempstead, Long Island; or Hempstead County, Arkansas; Hemp Hill, North Caroline, Hempstead County Texas, among others—well they were all named appropriately because they were all marijuana growing regions.

Many familiar products were made from the hemp plant such as schoolbooks and/or flax paper until the 1880s, and most schoolbooks were still made with Cannabis fiber until the early 1900s, and up until 1883 Seventy-five to ninety per cent of all paper in the world was made from Cannabis hemp. As a matter of fact, most books, maps, etc. were made from Cannabis hemp fiber.

According to reports from the Los Angeles Times, Aug 12th, 1981 it was legal to pay taxes with Cannabis hemp in the United States from 1631 until the early 1800s. Can you imagine refusing to grow Cannabis hemp was against the law in the United States during the 17th and 18th century; one could be jailed in Virginia for refusing to grow hemp from 1763 to 1769—quite a change from today.

Did you know that Cannabis hemp is the most durable, and longest lasting natural fiber known to exist on the earth and a vast percentage of all ships sails were made from Cannabis hemp since before Christ until the 1930s?

Again, did you know that the word canvas is the Dutch pronunciation of the Greek word Cannabis, and all canvas paintings were painted on Cannabis hemp linen canvas? As a matter of fact, much of the textile fabrics, clothing, drapes, linens, rugs, bed sheets, etc. were made from Cannabis hemp until the 1820s.

Lastly, did you know that the national flag itself was made from Cannabis hemp, and mostly all stocks and bonds were printed on hemp paper until the 1950s?

However, with the invention of the cotton gin, cotton began to steadily replace hemp—it was much easier to process and therefore less expensive and hemp fiber took a back seat and became the second most used natural fiber in the U.S. until the 1930s. It was usurped again by Du Pont plastic fibers which produced a much cheaper new wood pulp sulphide which was patented in 1937—hence all hemp rope and twine has been replaced mostly by petrochemical fibers, produced by Du Pont

Multiple Uses of an Amazing Herb

Astoundingly, Cannabis has been around for thousands of years and its herb has been used throughout recorded history by individuals for various purposes. Some of Cannabis’ various uses include being used as fiber as mentioned above, as a drug, as medicine, for oil and as food.
Male plants produce the fibers, while the females produce the oil. The leaves are the part of the plant used in foods, especially added to soups and varnish is made from the pressed seeds.
The Cannabis plant produces three types of narcotics: hashish (bhang), the dried leaves and flowers of male and female shoots; ganja, dried unfertilized inflorescences of special female plants; and charas, the crude resin, which is probably the strongest. Medicinal uses go back thousands of years and the benefits are many and modern medicine uses Cannabis in glaucoma and alleviating the pains of cancer and chemotherapy, as well as many other uses.

Cannabis has also been beneficial in treating symptoms associated with treatments for such serious conditions like AIDS, cancer, Crohn’s Disease, and hepatitis—its benefits seem to be endless.

Therapeutic Uses of Cannabinoids

There are several studies that were conducted and others that are presently being conducted to better look into the therapeutic benefits of Cannabis. Cannabis has long been thought of as a miraculous tool in the use of very serious conditions, and these studies strongly suggest that its therapeutic values are many. For instance Dronabinol (tetrahydrocannabinol) has been used as a prescription in the USA for more than ten years for the treatment of nausea and vomiting in the advanced stages of illnesses such ad ADS and cancer.

There are other studies being conducted whereby the therapeutic uses of cannabinoids has shown strong evidence supporting the benefits in the treatment of glaucoma, asthma, as an anti-depressant, appetite stimulant, anticonvulsant and anti-spasmodic. However more research is needed in this area, so that better therapeutic agents can be developed.

One of the first medicinal benefits of Individuals who began smoking marijuana was to reduce the nausea caused by anticancer drugs. Then, it proliferated and people began to discover symptom-alleviating benefits for other common conditions like chronic pain, glaucoma, and the spasticity caused by spinal cord injuries. However, despite more than twenty years’ worth of renewed interest, personal testimony, court challenges, and recovered research to support marijuana’s therapeutic efficacy, the drug continues to be viewed with great suspicion and the illegal status of marijuana still stands and smoking it is a criminal offense whether or not it provides relief to many individuals who can not find such relief available from prescription drugs.

Very Popular Herb Through-out History

Although its use dates back to ancient history, Cannabis became common throughout much of the world by the 19th century. It was first used as a powerful pain reliever until the birth of the infamous aspirin. It then proliferated in a host of treatments such as the treatment of melancholia, migraines, sleeping disorders, mood disorders and mental health issues like depression, post traumatic stress disorder and bipolar disorder. These types of uses continue to date when, in fact, in the year 2002 a review of medical literature established effects in the treatment of nausea, vomiting, unintentional weight loss and lack of appetite. It was also noted to be specifically beneficial in the area of pain associated with the nervous system, asthma and glaucoma, and disorders affecting mobility, and much more.

The Cannabis plant has an ancient history of ritual usages throughout the old world, as well as the present day. It has been traditionally used in a religious context as an aid to trance. There is documentation that goes as far back as the 5th to 2nd century BC when Herodotus, who was a Greek researcher and storyteller during the fifth century BC, wrote about early ceremonial practices by the Scythians. These religious practices have proliferated into the modern world and the Rastarfari movement, as well as other religious groups, embraced it. It has been said that most of the religious groups of the world have used cannabis in some form for religious rituals and beliefs, and Cannabis has a long history of spiritual use, especially in India. Historians like Herodotus have claimed that Cannabis was used by ancient Jews, Muslims of the Sufi order, as well as early Christians. There is much to be said in this area, but for all intended purposes, I think you get the picture—Cannabis is no stranger to man!

Adverse Effects of This Plant

Although used in moderation, Cannabis might not have neurotoxic effects, it is believed that heavy daily use might be quite contradictory and indeed might be toxic to human brain tissue. Research also suggests that there might in fact be a wide range of adverse health effects if pro-long use continues.

Acute Health Effects of Cannabis use

The acute effects of cannabis use have long been recognized, and recent studies have confirmed and extended earlier findings, which may be summarized as follows:

Long-term Cannabis use may impair cognitive development (learning processes), free recall of previously learned items is often impaired when Cannabis is used both during learning and recall periods.

Cannabis impairs psychomotor performance associated with various tasks, such as motor coordination, divided attention, and operative tasks of many types.

Human performance on complex machinery can be impaired for as long as 24 hours after smoking as little as 20 mg of THC in Cannabis—thereby increasing the risks of motor vehicles accidents among persons who drive when intoxicated by Cannabis similar to driving under the influence of alcohol.

Chronic Health Effects of Cannabis Use

Heavy use of Cannabis may cause impairment of cognitive functioning which include the organization and integration of complex information involving various mechanisms of attention and memory processes.

Prolonged use may lead to greater impairment, which may not recover with cessation of use, and which could affect an individual’s daily life performance.

It may become addictive in chronic users.

Cannabis use can exacerbate certain conditions such as schizophrenia in affected individual.

It smoking may cause major bronchi and associated problems.

Heavy and/or prolonged use of cannabis can produce a higher prevalence of symptoms of chronic bronchitis, such as airway obstruction, lung inflammation and impaired pulmonary defense against infection. This, however, is no different than symptoms of a cigarette smoker.

Precautions when Using This Herb

Individuals should be alerted that Cannabis may impair one’s judgment—so precautions should be taken when operating a motor vehicle or operation dangerous machinery.

Women who are pregnant should consult with their doctor before using Cannabis or breastfeeding to ensure the safety of the fetus or infant, whichever the case may be.

Individuals who are taking prescription drugs or over-the-counter meds should be sure that there will be no interactions if using Cannabis.

Therapeutic Uses of Cannabinoids

There are several studies that were conducted and others that are presently being conducted to better look into the therapeutic benefits of Cannabis. Cannabis has long been thought of as a miraculous tool in the use of very serious conditions, and these studie strongly suggest that its therapeutic values are many. For instance Dronabinol (tetrahydrocannabinol) has been used as a prescription in the USA for more than ten years for the treatment of nausea and vomiting in the advanced stages of illnesses such ad ADS and cancer.

There are other studies being conducted whereby the therapeutic uses of cannabinoids has shown strong evidence supporting the benefits in the treatment of glaucoma, asthma, as an antidepressant, appetite stimulant, anticonvulsant and anti-spasmodic. However more research is needed in this area, so that better therapeutic agents can be developed

Cannabis is still one of the most widely used drugs used in the United States, slightly behind alcohol and cigarettes. Millions of people - or one-third of all Americans - have tried marijuana and millions of them are current users. Although Cannabis is an illegal drug it continues to be grown throughout the world and it is used for medicinal purposes, as well as for pleasure. Many individuals feel that most people use products that are more damaging to the body without any thought to what they are doing to the body just because they were raised to think it is safe. They theorize that although heavy use of marijuana is not safe it is a lot safer than most of the common used drugs in today’s market.