Using THC For Inflammation

When asked some of the things they expect out of life, most people would usually say that they would like to live a long, healthy one.  That is all fine and well, the thing is, either some of their habits, situations they encounter in life, and their own bodies might conspire to prevent that from happening. Inflammation is something that your body itself does. By its own, it’s technically nothing bad at all. As a matter of fact, it is something actually necessary if not completely comfortable. Inflammation is simply your body responding to pain and damage. The hopeful result from your body’s response is to deal with whatever triggered it as soon as possible.

The inflammation might be visible or not, depending on where the affected tissue locates. The deeper inside your body, the less visible it is, yet, it might also be the most dangerous kind of inflammation. Besides the visible swell seen in part of the body that took a heavy blow, inflammation also manifests as arthritis flare-ups, back or neck pain, leg pain, joint pain, and many more forms. Inflammation can also cause headaches and even serious bowel issues. Worse, inflammation may also be the starting point of the development of heart and even Alzheimer’s disease. So, it’s not something to take lightly, and knowing how to deal with it might de lifesaving in the long run. One of the most ancient ways to do is, believe it or not, using marijuana’s THC for inflammation treatment. Don’t believe it? Keep reading

Using Marijuana’s THC For Inflammation

Cannabis has long been known as a plant that has powerful anti-inflammatory properties. So much so that ancient human civilizations used the plant precisely as a medical fixture precisely because of it. It’s only modern medicine that first shunned its powers in favor of synthetic drugs only to rediscover them recently. Per studies, cannabis might have a positive effect on inflammation and reducing the pain associated with it. As its cannabinoid compounds make their way to the cannabinoid receptors inside your body, relief ensues. One of those cannabinoids is THC.

Besides being a fantastic autoinflammatory on its own, THC is most famous nowadays for being the reason you get high from cannabis. THC’s effects are the actual reason authorities banned cannabis not that long ago. Now, besides being more open to its recreational use, we might be learning again that its benefits outweigh them. When using THC for inflammation, many people note relief ensues quickly, assuaging their physical discomfort. Not a small thing for those afflicted with chronic pain.

What Causes Inflammation?

Inflammation, as mentioned, is your body’s response to damage. Thus, it happens after an injury, say, getting hit by a car would usually leave the impacted side of the body visibly inflamed. But that not everything. Inflammation can also be internal; blows to the head might make your brain violently hit the skulls inside and inflame it. The injury causes the body to send white blood cells to the area to help improve the blood flow and release endorphins. Expect to see the swelling in the area that progressively decreases as it gets closer to healing. Now, chronic inflammation is another type of beast.

When it comes to inflammation that is chronic, areas affected will periodically inflame from time to time with little warning. No need for a blow to hit you. Rather, health disorders and diseases will cause this to happen and will continue until treating the underlying reasons. The problem is, the underlying reasons are sometimes tricky to pinpoint and, other times, impossible to treat. Autoimmune disorders will cause your body to falsely believe their own healthy tissues are damaged. It might even start attacking its own healthy tissue because it thinks it’s a foreign entity, no longer recognizing them as yours. It’s possible to treat some of these diseases; others, however, have no known treatment yet and are lifelong. Thus, patients could a for the chronic symptoms they will experience for the rest of their life, relief like THC for inflammation.

Side Effects of Pharmaceuticals Vs. Cannabis

Big pharma denied for a long time its synthetic prescription drugs had serious side-effects. We know now that is not true. Addiction, increased blood pressure, neurochemical imbalances, etc. There are many things that could go wrong for someone reacting badly to a medication originally meant to save their lives.

Cannabis, as a natural resource, has fewer overall side effects than most prescription drugs. Besides psychoactive effects, the most common side effects of using THC are:

• Dry mouth.
• Increased hunger.
• Some physical impairment.

Yet, the anti-inflammatory effect of THC makes those side-effects almost an afterthought for some chronic disease patients. Moreover, any of THC’s side effects unlike long-term side effects of some prescription drugs. As a matter of fact, it would be hard, if not impossible, to find a case of someone dying from cannabis overdoes. Whereas someone dying from prescription drugs is sadly common.

For How Long Have People Used THC For Inflammation?

Using THC for inflammation is anything but new. In fact, Hua Tao, an early Chinese surgeon from the 2^nd century, is an early example of someone using cannabis as a form of anesthesia. Over the centuries, the use of cannabis greatly evolved from combining it with alcohol to smoking it, vaping it, preparing edibles, tinctures, and much more. Mankind’s love of cannabis is something undeniable.

The myriad of potential therapeutic effects cannabis has made its use a given for ancient medicine practitioners. What we see today is nothing but the continuation of said tradition. Once removed the unjustified cultural taboos placed decades ago, we got back to using cannabis as medicine and likely will continue to do so for a long time.

Is THC Addictive?

The brain’s receptors react differently between pharmaceuticals and THC. Pharmaceuticals can quickly become an issue of addiction. They change the levels of dopamine in the brain causing the body to create more and more of the dopamine, and then it needs this to work properly. If later the body doesn’t have those same high levels of dopamine, it might cause anxiety, illness, and, yes, inflammation. The body, thus, becomes reliant upon the prescription drugs it became addicted to for getting its dopamine. Without it, it would go into an agitated state of withdrawal with serious symptoms until it goes back to the drug or the body adapts back to functioning without it.

The nervous system uses dopamine, a neurotransmitter, to help send messages between the nerve cells. It plays a vital role in feelings of pleasure, and it plays a huge part in how people think, act, and plan things out.

THC is not as addictive in the fashion as many pharmaceuticals. So far, research suggests that heavy users might at best become psychologically addicted. Meaning that they might psychologically think they need the plant, yet, they do not end up physically needing it to function. Thus, THC is far easier on the system than synthetic drugs, thus, causing a person to be more stable and relaxed in the long run.

Psychological Effects of Inflammation

Long-term stress can lead to a hyper physiological production of cortisol, the stress hormone. This, in turn, can alter how effective the amount of cortisol is in the body. Cortisol can regulate how the inflammatory and immunity systems respond to outward stimulation. The more stressed a person is, the more likely they are to struggle with inflammation due to increased cortisol levels.

Inflammation might lead to depression, anxiety, stress and impair the day-to-day activities of a person. The more inflammation, the longer and more serious the psychological effects derived from the condition.

How to Use THC For Inflammation?

Different forms of THC have different dosages. Always start with the smallest possible dosage of THC. Then, work your way up until you feel you get the most therapeutic effects with the least psychoactive effects. It’s important to note that different presentations of THC have different levels of bioavailability.

Some forms of THC can take up to a few hours before taking effect, and some others are very quick. Due to this, people not conscious of the time it takes for their preferred presentation to take effect might feel frustrated. Generally speaking, smoking is faster than ingested. Use that as a rule of thumb next time you are choosing between cannabis presentations.

Different Presentations Of THC

Some form of THC takes upwards of 2 hours or longer to take effect. Edibles must first go through the digestive system before they kick in and work to reduce inflammation in the body. For this reason, it can take up to 2 hours or longer before spreading the effects of THC in your body.

On the other hand, smoking or vaping is notoriously faster and might be the go-to for people wanting the relief of THC for inflammation fast. THC comes in a wide variety of products, and you can use it in a myriad of different ways to help reduce inflammation in the body. Here are a few kinds of products using THC that it’s available:

• Blunts (or cigars)
• Cigarettes
• Smoked in a pipe
• Vape Pens or devices
• Vape pipes
• Dab units or rigs
• Bongs or bubblers
• Edibles (gummies, chocolates, other food items)
• Sprays
• Tinctures
• Balms or salves
• Teas and other beverages

Some presentations have very different administration methods than others. For example, you applied balm or salve directly into the affected area and absorbed it through the skin. Products you must digest first will take an hour or two to take effect.

THC For Inflammation – The Takeaway.

Using THC for inflammation is an ideal way to avoid long-term side effects of pharmaceuticals, target the areas that require treatment, and directly focus on healing the body. With fewer side effects and more benefits, THC is officially back into medicine to help the body deal with inflammation.