Researchers at the Florida State University College of Medicine concluded that medical cannabis can replace opioid painkillers in many cases.
Scientists interviewed 2183 residents of the US state of Florida who were treated with cannabis for:
- mental illness and pain (47.92% of respondents);
- only mental disorders (28.86%);
- only pain (9.07%).
97.93% of patients took cannabinoids daily. 65.1% of them used cannabis for medical purposes for no more than 12 months, 20.99% - from one to three years, 3.26% - from three to five years, 2.79% - from five to 10 years , 7.86% - over 10 years. After analyzing the answers of the respondents about the consequences of taking cannabinoids, the experts found that cannabis:
- helped 99.9% of people relieve or get rid of the symptoms of diseases;
- improved the quality of life of 99.04% of patients.
Separately, it is worth noting that, according to 62.81% of respondents, cannabis greatly improved their health. And 60.34% of respondents are sure that cannabis has significantly improved the quality of life. Cannabinoids significantly relieved or completely eliminated pain in 79.25% of Americans and reduced its negative impact on the life of 84% of people. As a result, 79% of patients reduced their dosage or completely stopped taking opioid analgesics.
Given the results of a survey and other scientific studies, employees of the Florida State University College of Medicine believe that:
- cannabis is an effective remedy for chronic pain;
- the use of cannabis as an alternative to opioids does not impair the quality of life of patients.
According to the results of the analysis of the responses received, after the start of cannabis therapy, 41.71% of respondents stopped taking traditional painkillers, and 2.71% stopped taking analgesics and drugs for mental illness. Patients were able to stop taking opioids, as these drugs were no longer needed due to the healing effects of cannabis.
In 1999, the consumption of opioid analgesics began to skyrocket in the United States, which led to the emergence of the so-called opioid crisis. From 2010 to 2020, the number of Americans who died from opioid overdose more than quadrupled, from 21,089 to 91,799. However, the situation has not improved recently, because from 2019 to 2020 the number deaths increased by 31%. Obviously, the legalization of medical cannabis will reverse this trend, as all US residents will have access to cannabis, and they will be able to take cannabinoids instead of opioids.
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