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Cannabis Associated With Improved Quality Of Life for Tourette Syndrome Patients

Written by Frank Schuler on . Posted in Science.

It is estimated that roughly 0.5-1% of the world’s population has been diagnosed with some level of Tourette Syndrome, although the actual rate of people suffering from the condition could be greater due to gaps in identification and treatment in some parts of the world.

According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, “Tourette syndrome (TS) is a neurological disorder characterized by sudden, repetitive, rapid, and unwanted movements or vocal sounds called tics.” Currently, there is no cure for the condition.

Various treatments for Tourette Syndrome exist, with common ones being dopamine blockers, Botox injections, ADHD medications, anti-depressants, and anti-seizure medications. Everyone of those treatments can yield possible side effects. Fortunately, a recent study in Israel found that cannabis may help. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Tel Aviv, Israel: Tourette syndrome (TS) patients’ who consume cannabis products report significant improvements in their quality of life and reduce their intake of prescription medicines, according to data published in the journal Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research.

Israeli researchers assessed patients’ symptoms immediately prior to and following six months of cannabis treatment. Study participants generally inhaled THC-dominant cannabis flowers, though some patients also consumed extract formulations.

Researchers reported, “A statistically significant improvement in quality of life, employment status, and [a] reduction in the number of medications was found, with a statistically significant number of patients reporting improvements in OCD and anxiety symptoms after six months of treatment.” The authors also identified improvements in motor and vocal tic severity, but they acknowledged that these changes were not statistically significant.

Few patients reported experiencing adverse effects from cannabis treatment. Most commonly reported side effects were dry mouth, dizziness, and fatigue.

“Our findings suggest that medical cannabis may be an effective and safe option to improve comorbidities and quality of life in TS patients,” authors concluded. “Medical cannabis effectiveness should be further evaluated in large-scale randomized clinical trials.”

TS patients frequently report gaining symptomatic relief from cannabis, and several human trials have identified positive results in cohorts using either oral THC or inhaled cannabis.

Full text of the study, “Use of medical cannabis in patients with Gilles de la Tourette’s Syndrome in a real-world setting, appears in Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research. Additional information on cannabis and TS is available from NORML.

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Inhaled Cannabis “Safe And Effective” For Treating Lower Back Pain According To New Study

Written by Frank Schuler on . Posted in Science.

Since at least 1990, and likely prior, lower back pain is the leading cause of years lived with disability worldwide. According to the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017, roughly 7.5% of the world’s population experiences some level of lower back pain.

The study defined lower back pain as, “pain in the area on the posterior aspect of the body from the lower margin of the twelfth ribs to the lower gluteal folds with or without pain referred into one or both lower limbs that lasts for at least one day.”

Lower back pain can be caused by a number of factors, including work-related injuries. For some suffering patients, lower back pain comes and goes. However, for many others, the lower back pain is chronic in nature and continues for weeks or months on end. In severe cases, the pain never goes away at all.

A growing number of patients suffering from chronic lower back pain are turning to cannabis for relief, including via inhaled consumption methods. According to a new study out of Israel, inhaled cannabis is safe and effective in those instances. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Haifa, Israel: The inhalation of THC-dominant cannabis flower long-term safely mitigates symptoms of chronic lower back pain in a manner that is more effective than the use of CBD-dominant extracts, according to observational trial data published in the Israeli journal Rambam Maimonides.

Israeli researchers assessed the safety and efficacy of THC-dominant flowers and CBD-dominant sublingual extracts in a cohort of patients with low back pain. Study participants engaged in the daily use of extracts for one year, followed by the use of cannabis flower in year two.

Researchers reported, “THC-rich smoked cannabis inflorescence was more effective than CBD-rich cannabis-extracts for inducing symptom relief in LBP [lower back pain],” as assessed on a visual analogue scale and by a disability index. Additionally, patients’ use of analgesic medicines fell significantly during year two of the trial. No serious adverse events were reported.

Authors concluded: “Our findings indicate that inhaled THC-rich therapy is more effective than CBD-rich sublingual extract therapy for treating low back pain and that cannabis therapy is safe and effective for chronic low back pain.”

An estimated 111,000 Israelis are currently licensed to use medical cannabis products. More than half of those patients utilize cannabis to treat chronic pain conditions.

Several prior studies have similarly demonstrated that cannabis use is associated with reduced opioid consumption in patients with chronic back pain.

Full text of the study, “Comparing sublingual and inhaled cannabis therapies for low back pain: An observational open-label study,” appears in Rambam Maimonides Medical Journal. Additional information on the use of cannabis for chronic pain is available from NORML.

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Israeli Bioreactor Yields Exponentially More Potent Cannabis Cells

Written by Frank Schuler on . Posted in Science.

Israel has long served as an international cannabis research hub. In fact, Israel is home to the most famed cannabis researcher of all time, Prof. Raphael Mechoulam of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Prof. Mechoulam, who is dubbed the ‘Godfather of Cannabis Research,’ is credited with being the first scientist to describe the chemical structure of cannabidiol (CBD), and also for being the first to isolate tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

During an era when most countries seemingly did everything that they could to hinder cannabis research, Israel embraced it. As a result, the country has an enormous head start on most, if not all, other countries when it comes to cannabis research.

As further proof that Israel is on the cutting edge of cannabis science, it is being reported that researchers in Israel have boosted the potency of cannabis cells twelve fold by creating them in a bioreactor. Per Times of Israel:

An Israeli company has cloned hemp cells and used a bioreactor to grow them into a substance with all the active compounds of cannabis — and 12 times the potency.

BioHarvest Sciences says the breakthrough could make the medical benefits of cannabis available in cheaper, cleaner and greener form. It has started applying for the necessary licenses to manufacture and sell its product for medical use in Israel and the United States.

How long it will take for the products to actually make it to patients is anyone’s guess at this point. For that matter, I suppose it’s still possible that the process could get derailed in some way, as all things international cannabis are typically more complex than they need to be.

It’s unclear if the end product has been tested on humans yet and determined to be safe for patient consumption. Sufficiently arriving at that determination alone could take some time and involve a process that is riddled with hurdles.

Still, it’s a possibly huge scientific breakthrough. The cannabis cells produced in the bioreactors reportedly only take three weeks to create from start to finish. That is a significantly shorter window of time compared to traditional cultivation methods (up to six months in some cases).

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Study Associates Cannabis With Improved Sleep In Adults With PTSD

Written by Frank Schuler on . Posted in Science.

Post-traumatic stress disorder is a very serious issue all over the globe. The prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is estimated to be 3.9% in the general population, and a much higher rate for those that have lived in countries where war and conflict has occurred.

According to the Mayo Clinic, “Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition that’s triggered by a terrifying event — either experiencing it or witnessing it.”

As with most health conditions, there are varying degrees of severity when it comes to PTSD, ranging from mild anxiety all the way to full blown panic attacks occurring regularly to the point that the patient can’t function. Flashbacks and regular nightmares are also symptoms of PTSD.

Fortunately, the cannabis plant has been found by a growing list of studies to help people that suffer from PTSD. A recent study in Israel found that cannabis use is associated with improved sleep among adults with PTSD. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Haifa, Israel: The use of cannabis prior to bedtime is associated with perceived improvements in sleep in subjects diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), according to data published in the Journal of Anxiety Disorders.

Israeli researchers assessed the impact of cannabis on sleep in a cohort of 77 PTSD patients. Study participants kept a daily journal where they recorded numerous sleep measures each morning.

Investigators acknowledged that the use of cannabis was associated with self-reported improvements in sleep onset and a reduction in the frequency of nightmares. Subjects who consumed products higher in CBD were less likely to report early awakenings.

“Our data suggest that MC [medical cannabis] may help reduce nightmares and [that] CBD in particular may be important for preventing early awakenings,” they wrote. “This provides a strong basis for further hypotheses testing, potentially through clinical trials, of the sleep-inducing effects of MC and for testing CBD in particular.”

Authors concluded, “Given the high comorbidity of PTSD symptoms and sleep disturbances and the potential for MC to have effects on both, a greater understanding of how patients experience the effects of MC on overall PTSD symptoms and sleep disturbances is warranted.”

Prior studies have similarly reported that cannabis products may be associated with improved sleep duration and with improvements in insomnia. The enactment of adult-use marijuana legalization has also been correlated with a decrease in the sale of over-the-counter sleep aid medications.

Full text of the study, “Post-traumatic stress disorder, sleep, and medical cannabis treatment: A daily diary study,” appears in the Journal of Anxiety Disorders. Additional information on cannabis and post-traumatic stress is available from NORML.

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CBD Extracts Reduce Agitation In Dementia Patients According To Israeli Study

Written by Hazel Norman on . Posted in Science.

According to the World Health Organization as many as 55 million people worldwide live with some level of dementia. That number is expected to increase to 78 million by 2030 and up to 139 million by 2050.

Dementia is a syndrome that involves the deterioration of cognitive function among those that suffer from the condition. The deterioration goes beyond what is expected as a result of typical human biological aging.

The condition disturbs multiple higher cortical functions including but not limited to learning and memory, focusing, language, motor perception, and social cognition. Cases range from mild symptoms all the way to cases in which the patient is completely debilitated because of the condition.

Heightened agitation among patients suffering from dementia is common, as patients are often disoriented and become frustrated by their surroundings and interactions with people they are unfamiliar with. Fortunately, a recent study in Israel found that cannabidiol (CBD) may help. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Tel Aviv, Israel: The administration of plant-derived extracts containing high levels of CBD and low levels of THC reduces agitation in patients suffering from behavioral disturbances related to dementia, according to clinical trial data published in the journal Frontiers in Medicine.

Israeli researchers assessed the safety and efficacy of CBD-dominant extracts (30 to 1 ratio of CBD to THC) compared to placebo in a cohort of seniors (mean age: 79 years) with dementia. Subjects in the trial received sublingual drops of either cannabis extracts or a placebo (olive oil) three times daily for a period of 16 weeks.

“Patients in the investigational group experienced a significantly greater reduction in sleep disturbances, and in agitation and aggression sub-score using two different measurement tools. The improvements were accompanied with non-serious side-effects,” authors reported. ”We recommend conducting a large scale randomized controlled trial on behavioral disturbances related to dementia and to compare clinical sub-types of dementia.”

The findings are consistent with those of other studies – such as those here, here, and here - reporting that the use of either cannabis flowers or extracts mitigates agitation in dementia patients.

Full text of the study, “Effects of rich cannabidiol oil on behavioral disturbances in patients with dementia: A placebo controlled randomized clinical trial,” appears in Frontiers in Medicine.

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Medical Cannabis Patients Deserve To Cultivate Their Own Medicine

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Policy.

Having safe access to effective medications is something that should be a fundamental right. Unfortunately, as many medical cannabis patients around the world will attest, obtaining safe access to medical cannabis is not always easy. Even when cannabis is legal it can be expensive for many patients, which is why legal home cultivation is so vital. Sadly, many patients are denied the right to home cultivation, including in Israel where the nation’s top court recently rejected a case that sought to establish the right for patients to cultivate cannabis.

Prior to a change in 2016 patients in Israel were allowed to cultivate cannabis in their homes for medical use, which was noted by those seeking to legalize home cultivation in their filing. The petition to Israel’s top court involved eight medical cannabis patients who stated in their petition, among other things, that home cultivation should be legalized to help mitigate the costs of medical cannabis products which the patients claimed were too high. Unfortunately, Israel’s top court was not swayed.

Legal Reasoning

Another argument made by the petitioners was that they sought to “receive organic cannabis without pesticides and which does not undergo irradiation,” and that being able to cultivate cannabis at home would achieve that objective. Unfortunately, the judges that decided to reject the case pointed out various reasons for doing so, including the lack of timeliness of the petition. The judges pointed out that the decision to remove ‘cultivation, production’ from Israel’s medical cannabis law as it pertains to patients happened in 2016.

The judges argued that the petitioners ‘failed to exhaust procedures as required’ and also included a dose of reefer madness fearmongering by stating in their opinion that home cultivation generates ‘overuse, a high potential for theft and leakage, and there is no real medical advantage in self-cultivation of cannabis.’

“The feelings of the petitioners and their plight can be understood,” the judges wrote in the ruling (translated from Hebrew to English), “however, the petition must be rejected outright. This is, first and foremost, since the petitioners seek to obtain a government decision that was made about 6 years ago, so their petition was submitted with considerable delay. The petitioners, too now, they have not exhausted procedures against the relevant party and their early requests (to the Ministry of Health) did not contain the multitude of claims in the petition.”

The Fight For Safe Access Continues

Despite the opinions of Israel’s top court, the need for home cultivation in Israel will continue. It doesn’t matter how long ago Israel changed its policies regarding home cultivation. The fact of the matter is that not all patients can afford to only acquire their cannabis from regulated outlets. For many patients, it’s far more cost effective to cultivate their own cannabis, and in some cases, being prohibited from cultivating cannabis at home basically means that some patients will have to go without medicine entirely since they can’t afford it.

As the petitioners in this latest case in Israel highlighted, it is a huge benefit to some patients to be able to completely control what cannabis genetics they cultivate and what they use to feed their cannabis plants. The cannabis plant is dynamic, and human biology is complex, so there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ cannabis product. What works for one patient may not work for the next patient, and public policy needs to account for that via legalized home cultivation.

The judges’ assertion that ‘there is no real medical advantage in self-cultivation’ is completely ridiculous and flies in the face of logic and compassion. Every patient deserves to cultivate their own medicine, and that is true in Israel as well as everywhere else on the planet.

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The End of Israeli Public Cannabis Companies?

Written by Marguerite Arnold on . Posted in Business, Policy.

Before the pandemic, the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange was bubbling. Now the Tel Aviv Exchange is dropping the Cannabis Index. What gives?

In what is going to be a blow to the idea of a public cannabis company in Israel, if not beyond, the Tel Aviv Exchange has dealt another blow to the public cannabis company model. Namely, it is dropping the so-called Cannabis Index.

Just three years ago, both celebrities and public figures were being avidly recruited by Israeli cannabis companies to promote themselves to investors and raise their stock value. Much like in Canada, many Israeli companies that went public did so by merging with an existing shell company already listed on the exchange. After their debut on the exchange, at least initially, stock values soared. 18 months ago, the exchange then created its own Cannabis Index, although many doubted how useful this would be. The biggest reason for such early doubts? There were actually very few companies listed on the exchange, and as a result, it was dominated by just a few companies. In fact, the value of the exchange was mainly based on the valuation of just one company.

After soaring in value, the cannabis bubble burst, and the worth of the index has now dropped 70%, leading to the decision to delist it, as of this Thursday, August 4.

Are Public Companies the Future of The Cannabis Industry Anywhere?

While there are successful public cannabis companies, the continued roil of their worth on the public markets continues to be controversial. For example, Canopy Growth, by far the market leader both domestically and during the first expansion overseas, to Germany, was just delisted in Canada.

Part of this painful arc is the huge costs that have been required to both build certified facilities as well as gain market share. The largest companies have gotten this way by acquisition rather than organic growth.

Part of this is the growth of the industry, in all places, almost simultaneously.

In Israel, the Pandemic is also surely partly to blame.

Not all public cannabis companies are doing badly. But the reality is as the industry goes into its next iteration that public companies are not necessarily the only model, or the best one, to create a profitable company.

The Israeli exchange may be headed for extinction, but the idea of a public cannabis company is not.

For all the excitement about recreational legalization, one thing is increasingly abundantly clear. The structure of cannabis companies themselves is far from a given – and public companies may not (yet) be the best or ideal way to raise cash and conduct global operations.

While there are increasing numbers of public pot companies globally, it is also clear that there have been some gigantic missteps too.

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Study Finds That Aerosolized Cannabis Significantly Reduces Pain Levels

Written by Marguerite Arnold on . Posted in Science.

Cannabis inhalers are not necessarily a new technology, however, they are definitely newer than some other consumption methods. It’s an emerging technology in the cannabis space.

Many medical cannabis patients would likely prefer to use an inhaler versus smoking cannabis, and I am sure that many medical professionals would prefer that patients use inhalers as well.

Researchers in Israel recently conducted a study involving a specific type of cannabis inhaler to measure its efficacy on pain among neuropathy patients. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Haifa, Israel: The administration of aerosolized cannabis via a novel inhaler is associated with long-term pain reductions in patients with neuropathy and other chronic conditions, according to data published in the journal Pain Reports.

Israeli investigators assessed the efficacy of cannabis delivered via a novel metered selective dose inhaler (The Syqe Inhaler) in a cohort of chronic pain patients. The mean daily stable dose used by patients in the study was 1.5 mg of aerosolized delta-9-THC.

Use of the inhaler over a period of several months was associated with reduced pain scores and improvements in patients’ quality of life. Some patients reported mild side-effects (typically dizziness and sleepiness) at the onset of the study, but few participants continued to report these effects throughout the duration of the trial.

Authors concluded: “Medical cannabis treatment with the Syqe Inhaler demonstrated overall long-term pain reduction[s], quality of life improvement[s], and opioid-sparing effect[s] in a cohort of patients with chronic pain, using just a fraction of the amount of MC [medical cannabis] compared with other modes of delivery by inhalation. These outcomes were accompanied by a lower rate of AEs [adverse events] and almost no AE reports during a long-term steady-state follow-up. Additional follow-up in a larger population is warranted to corroborate our findings.”

According to recently compiled survey data, nearly one in three chronic pain patients report using cannabis for treatment management. Among patients in US states where medical cannabis access is permitted, over 60 percent are qualified to use it to treat pain.

Full text of the study, “Long-term effectiveness and safety of medical cannabis administered through the metered-dose Syqe Inhaler,” appears in Pain Reports. Additional information on cannabis and chronic pain is available from NORML.

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Cancer Patients Reduced Prescriptions, Improved Symptoms After Long-Term Cannabis Use

Written by Frank Schuler on . Posted in Science.

If you have battled cancer, or know someone that has, then you are completely aware of how awful of a condition it can be. To make matters worse, many of the current treatments for cancer come with a number of terrible side effects.

The cannabis plant has helped many cancer patients over many years in various ways, and according to a recent study in Israel, it is associated with reduced prescriptions and improvements in symptoms. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Haifa, Israel: The use of cannabis products over a six-month period is associated with statistical improvements in cancer-related symptoms as well as significant reductions in subjects’ use of prescription painkillers, according to longitudinal data published in the journal Frontiers in Pain Research.

Israeli researchers assessed the long-term use of cannabis in a cohort of several hundred oncology patients.

Consistent with studies of other patient cohorts, cannabis use was associated with symptom mitigation, improved quality of life, and reduced prescription drug use. Among those participants who completed the trial, nearly half ceased their use of analgesics.

Authors concluded: “The main finding of the current study is that most cancer comorbid symptoms improved significantly during six months of MC [medical cannabis] treatment. … Additionally, we found that MC treatment in cancer patients was well tolerated and safe. … In conclusion, this prospective, comprehensive and large-scale cohort demonstrated an overall mild to modest long-term statistical improvement of all investigated measures including pain, associated symptoms and, importantly, reduction in opioid (and other analgesics) use.”

Full text of the study, “The effectiveness and safety of medical cannabis for treating cancer related symptoms in oncology patients,” appears inFrontiers in Pain Research. Additional information is available from the NORML fact sheet, “Relationship Between Marijuana and Opioids.”