We all know about the controversial herb, Mary Jane, whether you use it or not. This particular plant has been stirring up controversy since its discovery way back when. But did you know that is has a laundry list of benefits? Before I get into those—and I cannot wait to—let us dive into the history of the cannabis plant so that we can further value and respect it. Let’s get into it.
HISTORY
Cannabis has been utilized as fiber, food, an inebriant, and medicine beginning around 12,000 years ago! So this plant is nothing new to us.
But Where Did it Come From?
The earliest clues that we have to answer this question are the remnants of 10,200-year-old dried cannabis seed specimens found at a Jomon-period Japanese archaeological site on the island of Kyushu. Researcher Dave Olson says, “A Neolithic cave painting from coastal Kyushu in southwest Japan depicts tall stalks with hemp-shaped leaves. Strangely dressed people, horses, and waves are also in the painting, perhaps depicting the Korean traders bringing hemp to Japan.” After horses were domesticated and the coming about of the Bronze Road around 5,000 years ago, the cannabis plant may have spread across Eurasia. Since cannabis had several uses during this time, the plant may have been a valuable trade commodity.
As for evidence of the initial use of cannabis being used for inebriation, residues of scorched cannabis seed have been discovered in Romania, and the North Caucasus gives testament that cannabis was burned in Bronze Age funeral rituals. Herodotus, a Greek historian, reported that Scythians— nomadic warriors who resided in what is now southern Siberia— would “howl with joy” after inhaling the air inside the tents that were overfilling with the fragrant smoke from the cannabis plant.
What About for Medicine?
As for its use as medicine, the earliest written evidence we have for the cannabis plant comes from ancient China. In the teachings of Shen-Nung, a legendary Emperor who reigned 4,700 years ago, cannabis was cited as an important remedy, along with ginseng and ephedra! By the time the first century came around, there were more than ONE HUNDRED medical conditions that Chinese oral traditions had covered!
From 1500 to 200 B.C.E., cannabis was notably used as medicine in areas such as the Mediterranean, Egypt, Greece, and India. The religious text of Zoroastrianism of ancient Persia, modern day Iraq, the Avesta ranked cannabis as the most important of all known medicinal plants! (I agree to be honest, hmph)
Good or Evil?
In early Islamic medicine, cannabis was both praised and condemned. Mohammad-e Zakariã-ye Rãzi was a great Persian physician who practiced from around 865 to 925 C.E. noted a plethora of uses for cannabis as medicine. On the other hand, a physician, Ibn Wahshiya, mentioned in his book, On Poisons, that the mere aroma of cannabis resin could kill within days of exposure. Read the room, sir.
Fast forward to the 17th century, where we finally have some more written information on cannabis, medically. English scholar, Robert Burton included “hemp seed” as one of many plant remedies for depression in The Anatomy of Melancholy. Herbalist, Nicholas Culpeper, mentioned hemp as an anti-inflammatory in the English Physician. Cannabis was finally beginning to get the recognition it deserved.
Cannabis indica became reacquainted to Western medicine in 1838 thanks to Sir William Brooke O’Shaughnessy, an Irish physician working in Calcutta, India. He was well-known for studying the use of medicinal cannabis and taking note of all of his experiments. He first experimented with animals to assess the harm before advancing to experimenting on people. Cannabis, as medicine or an inebriant, was actually more often consumed orally rather than smoked in his work. The work of O’Shaughnessy started to gain traction in Europe and doctors began to study cannabis and its many uses for the next 50 years.
In 1887, Italian physician Raffaele Valieri glorified the benefits of local hemp grown in Campania. Valieri also recommended inhaling hemp to effectively treat neuropathic pain, Graves’ disease, COPD, asthma, and migraines! Personal physician to Queen Victoria, J.R. Reynolds, wrote in 1890 in the Lancet— a HIGHLY respected journal btw— “In almost all painful maladies I have found Indian hemp by far the most useful of drugs.” That is more I like it.
BANNED. But why?
The International Opium Convention, which was endorsed and approved by the League of Nations, took place in 1925 and mentioned banning cannabis and its derivatives except for medical and scientific use. This form of cannabis prohibition has been in place from 1925, 1928 for the UK, until present day. How crazy is that?!
By the mid-1930s, cannabis had been banned in all 48 states so even though it was listed as a medicine in the U.S. Pharmacopeia, or USP, it was nearly impossible to acquire. The federal government later banned cannabis with the Marihuana Tax Act of 1937. Something interesting happened during the hearing on the Tax Act, however. The American Medical Association’s (AMA) legislative counsel, Dr. William C. Woodward stated that “there are potentialities in the drug that should not be shut off by adverse legislation. The medical profession and pharmacologists should be left to develop the use of this drug as they see fit.” His words were unfortunately fallen on deaf ears.
By the 20th century, cannabis had gone from being looked at as a safe and effective medicine to something hazardous or life threatening. From World War II until the early 1960s, cannabis was only studied in the context of being a dangerous narcotic. When I attended my virtual conference on medical cannabis in August, I learned that the only way that journals would publish any information on cannabis is if those conducting the experiment either studied the adverse effects or side effects or the dangers of cannabis. That is absolutely horrible, IMO. There are many people who can benefit medically from this incredible herb and it is being slandered. One day, we will get there because I really believe this is a miracle plant that is not yet being used to its full potential.
The most recent scientific era of cannabis research came in 1964 with the introduction of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC: the major psychoactive ingredient of cannabis. The structure of THC was explained in great detail and then synthesized by researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, Raphael Mechoulam and Yechiel Gaoni. I believe there is much more to discover, but we just haven’t gotten that far yet.
THE CANNABIS PLANT
Cannabis belongs to the plant family of Cannabaceae which contains flowering plants that likely originated within the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. It has now evolved and grown around the globe! The Cannabaceae family also includes hops whose female flowers are used to make beer.
There is an ongoing debate about whether cannabis has two species (Cannabis sativa and Cannabis indica) or one species with two subspecies (Cannabis sativa subspecies sativa and Cannabis sativa subspecies indica). Both parties speculate that sativa is the fiber type of cannabis that produces more CBDA (cannabidiolic acid) and less than one percent THCA (THC acid, more on this later). On the flip side, indica is the more drug-rich cannabis type being THCA dominant.
Males Vs Females
Cannabis produces male and female flowers on separate plants. Most other flowering plants display both male and female reproductive organs on the SAME plant. But cannabis isn’t most plants, is it? It is said that cannabis evolved two sexes in order to cultivate a wider genetic diversity. I mean... it’s the intelligence for me.
At the start of the 19th century in India, it was perceived that seedless, unpollinated female cannabis flowers produced more drug resin, thus more cannabinoids and terpenes (more on these later as well). The Indians developed a technique of separating male plants before they could pollinate the female plants and this gave rise to a form of unfertilized, seedless female cannabis flowers known as ganja. This approach led to plants that would produce an abundant of resin while awaiting pollination.
What's So Great About the Resin Anyway?
The cannabis plant produces specialized hairs called trichomes which secrete resinous oils. Trichomes emerged for protection, seed dispersal, etc. The female plant produces an overflow of resin-producing trichomes in its flowering tops. The unpollinated female cannabis plant has the capability of bringing forth greater concentrations, up to 20 times higher than male or fertilized female plants. The only time an unfertilized female is looked at with respect, amiright??
If you were to look at a trichome underneath a microscope, it would look like a ball sitting on the top of a tree. The ball is the resin head, filled with oils from secretory cells and when these heads are punctured or disrupted, they release potent aromatic chemicals aka terpenes. Terpenes also help to balance the effects of THC and other cannabinoids. Trichomes are by far the cannabis plant’s most delicate part. They also bear most of the medicine, so trichomes must be handled with extreme care so that their contents aren’t released and prematurely oxidized. I will touch more on this in detail in a later post, I promise!
How did I get into this?
I was in my third year of pharmacy school at VCU when a mother came to speak to my class about her daughter. Her daughter had been suffering from hundreds of seizures DAILY. Then, a VCU doctor took a chance and treated this child with cannabis oil. Do you know what her mother said happened after that? Her daughter had been seizure free for years! I remember crying tears of joy for her and also looking up more about medical cannabis.
We didn’t learn much about the use of cannabis in school, but then again why would we? It’s not like we have access to it, right? Me being me, however, I dove into research articles searching for whatever I could find to the point of obsession. I couldn’t believe what I was finding about its benefits! Fast forward to August of this year where I attended, virtually of course, a two-day conference where several health care providers— including researchers, physicians and pharmacists— shared what they knew and how they utilized medical cannabis in their respective practices. I was absolutely blown away by everything that I learned.
I believe, eventually, that cannabis will be appreciated for the precious plant that it is. If you were to ask me what cannabis treats, I would simply say, “What doesn’t it treat?!” We have only just begun to uncover the medical impact that cannabis can have and that truly stimulates me. I have learned of many success stories and want to be a part of many, many more.
Comment below and let me know what you guys would like to learn about, specifically or just if you enjoyed the read! Thank you for reading and as always,
Much love!
References:
Backes, Michael. Cannabis Pharmacy: the Practical Guide to Medical Marijuana. Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers, 2017.
Dave Olson, "Hemp Culture in Japan," Journal of the International Hemp Association 4, no. 2. June 1997: pages 40-50
H.C. Kerr, Report of the Cultivation of, and Trade in, Ganja in Bengal, British Parliamentary Papers, 1893-94: page 66
Nizar Happyana, Metabolomics, Proteomics, and Transcriptomics of Cannabis sativa L. trichomes. Diss. 2014
U.S. Congress, Senate Committee on Finance, Taxation of Marihuana, Hearing on H.R. 6906, 75th Cong., 1st sess., July 12, 1937. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1937.: page 33