Hemp or Medical Cannabis?

Hemp and Medical Cannabis: How Do They Differ?

Objective:

  • Provide information to help consumers and patients understand the products or medicine
  • Share common uses for each
  • Give a high-level view of main uses of each
  • Summarize Georgia Guidelines
  • Share the “Approved” Conditions for Medical Cannabis Treatment in GA

Note: This presentation is only for educational purposes

Always consult your medical provider before using Cannabis Medications and Products

 

CANNABIS

Cannabis is a type of plant with different varieties, including marijuana plants and hemp plants.. These plants produce over 400 compounds, over sixty of which are unique to the plant and can be isolated for medicinal and other purposes.

 

CANNABINOIDS

Cannabinoids are the active chemical compounds that are unique to cannabis plants. They are the active ingredients in various cannabis products that lead to benefits and other effects.

 

CANNABIDIOL

Cannabidiol – or CBD – is a cannabinoid found in the seeds, stalks, and flowers of the cannabis plant. It occurs naturally and can be extracted, independent of other cannabinoids, in oil form.

 

THC

Tetrahydrocannabinol – or THC – is the most commonly found cannabinoid in the cannabis plant. Known for its psychoactive effects, it is the compound responsible for the “high” produced by recreational and medical cannabis or marijuana.

 

How cannabis works in your body?

  • We are all born with an Endocannabinoid system. The sole purpose of this system is to receive and react to endocannabinoids and phytocannabinoids; both those made naturally by our bodies and those found in cannabis.
  • Endocannabinoids and their receptors(CB-1 and CB-2) are found throughout the body: in the brain, organs, connective tissues, glands, and immune cells.

CB2 receptors are mostly in the peripheral especially cells associated with the immune system.

CB1 receptor are primarily found in the brain and central nervous system, and to lesser extend in the other tissues.

 

The Endocannabinoid System ( ECS)

The goal of your ECS is to promote homeostasis; Optimal balance in the body

üWhen the ECS is disrupted, the body does not produce enough endocannabinoids or cannot regulate them.

An endocannabinoid deficiency may result in illnesses that affect one or several of the functions listed to the right.

 

Hemp

  • Cannabis Sativa
  • Contains 0.3% THC or less
  • Has no Psychoactive effects
  • Industrial Hemp Plants are tall and skinny because they were largely bred for their fiber, which is mainly found in the stalks of the plant
  • Federally legal in all 50 states
  • Does not require a physician’s recommendation

 

Benefits of Cannabis in the ECS

Scientists now believe Cannabis may play a role in the following medical conditions.

  • Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
  • Migraines
  • Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
  • Neuropathy
  • Huntington’s
  • Parkinson’s
  • Motion Sickness
  • Autism
  • And improve nausea, appetite, sleep, anxiety

 

MEDICAL CANNABIS

  • Contains more than 0.3% THC
  • THC is the primary psychoactive compound of cannabis
  • The majority of THC and other healthful compounds are in the flower of the cannabis plants, meaning the more flower, the better.
  • This has led to marijuana plants being shorter and bushier
  • Schedule 1 – Federally Illegal
  • Medically legal on a state-by-state basis
  • Requires a physician’s recommendation and state ID card

 

 CBD OIL

  • Commercially available CBD oil is derived from the hemp plant (unless bought at a dispensary)
  • Classified as: Full Spectrum- contains the entire plant, including >.3% THC, terpenes and other cannabinoids
  • Broad Spectrum- contains terpenes and cannabinoids, but no THC
  • Isolate- contains solely CBD

 

CULTIVATION

Hemp

  • Grown outdoors
  • Does not require controlled environments
  • Adaptable to grow in most climates
  • Grown close together (4 inches apart)
  • Growth cycle- 108-120 days
  • Goal is to maximize size and yield

 

Medical Cannabis

  • Grown indoors to maintain exact conditions
  • Requires carefully controlled warm and humid atmosphere
  • Grown further apart
  • Growth cycle- 60-90 days
  • Goal is to optimize characteristics and produce female plants that yield budding flowers

 

USES

Hemp

  • Paper, clothing, building materials, plasticCooking oil, hemp flour, and hemp seed- based productsTinctures, capsules, vapes, edibles, topicals

Medical Cannabis

  • Recreational Use
  • Medical Use
  • Tinctures, capsules, vapes, edibles, topicals, suppositories

 

Conclusion: Hemp Vs Medical Cannabis

Hemp 

  • Contains 0.3% THC or less
  • Has no Psychoactive effects
  • Federally legal in all 50 states
  • Does not require a physician’s recommendation
  • Is not regulated or often tested

Medical Cannabis

  • Contains more than 0.3% THC
  • Can be psychoactive due to THC compound of cannabis
  • Schedule 1 – Federally Illegal
  • Medically legal on a state-by-state basis
  • Requires a physician’s recommendation

 

References

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