Determined by time, we find ourselves at a new beginning. So many Cannabis initiates have been undermined by mentioning the word marijuana that the discussion ends there, not having the tools of knowledge to go further in detail.
Our stories get lost in the criminal system and the essence of the plant itself gets lost in commercial enterprise.
We all have a voice and common interest in the new Cannabis arena. But so many questions go un-answered. The cloak of illusion is a strong fabric which can be raised if we all understand the real truth.
That’s exactly why we have created the Cannabis Wave forum. To tell your truth with integrity and honor. To know the Cannabis history, the political agenda. The awe-inspiring magic of the plant itself.
In 2001, the American Alliance for Medical Cannabis was formed by Dr. Jay R. Cavanaugh to promote the medical uses of marijuana. AAMC became a member of the Coalition for Rescheduling Cannabis which filed a petition with the federal government to remove marijuana from their “no medical use” classification. Nine years later the government denied the petition.
AAMC now has directors active in 21 states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin). We are helping patients find the resources they need in order to benefit from medical cannabis. The AAMC website continues to be a valuable source of information for hundreds of thousands of people who want to know about medical marijuana and how to use it.
We must continue our efforts to educate decision makers about the medical use of marijuana. The scientific record shows that marijuana is remarkably safe and effective in the treatment of serious illness. In order to overcome political resistance to accept the existence of medical marijuana, we must combine our efforts and strengthen our voice. We need patients, gardeners, business owners, scientists, lawyers, and politicians to join together and help create the change we must have.
Please take a moment to become a member of the American Alliance for Medical Cannabis. Together we can make our voice heard.
American Alliance for Medical Cannabis mission:
Ongoing discussions with community leaders and government representatives to promote safe and responsible access to medicine
Creation and distribution of educational materials
Provision of an interactive internet website
Planning and conducting educational events for the general public, law enforcement, caregivers, health professionals, patients, and families of patients
Identification and dissemination of medical, social, and legal resources for patients and caregivers
Ongoing review of the medical/scientific literature relating to medical cannabis including clinical trials and efficacy
Assistance to hospice facilities and other venues providing help to the chronically ill
Provision of continuing education for physicians, nurses, and other health care providers
Efforts to organize individuals and groups interested in the questions and problems around medical cannabis. Efforts will include state, national, and internet meetings
Political controversy over medical marijuana is widespread in the United States, but clinical studies conducted abroad over
the past forty-some years have revealed that marijuana, or cannabis, does indeed appear to have potent therapeutic qualities.
Widely regarded as one of the world’s experts on cannabinoid-based medicine, and a member of the Israel Academy of Sciences, Dr. Raphael Mechoulam, Ph.D., Professor of Medicinal Chemistry at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, along with his colleagues, has been researching what he calls “cannabinoid chemistry” over these past four decades, making many notable contributions to the field. Dr. Mechoulam has written countless scientific papers on his cannabinoid research results, as well as a review of his group’s early studies, the book Cannabinoids as Therapeutic Agents.
Dr. Mechoulam has been awarded many honors for his groundbreaking work, including the highest national scientific prize in Israel-the Israel Prize. He is a past-president of the International Cannabinoid Research Society. Those who know Dr. Mechoulam describe him as mentally vigorous, generous and kind.
In 1964 Dr. Mechoulam and his associates identified and synthesized THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol), creating an entire new line of medical research. Twenty-eight years later, in 1992, working with Drs. William Devane and Lumir Hanus, Dr. Mechoulam identified the brain’s natural version of THC, or endocannabinoid. The doctors named this natural THC “anandamide,” from the Sanskrit, ananda, which is translated as “eternal bliss” or “supreme joy.”
Research has revealed that the brain contains many cannabinoid neurotransmitters and receptors. The 1964 discovery of THC led to the eventual discovery of the endocannabinoid system in the brain. Further research conducted by Dr. Mechoulam, working with Dr. Lumir Hanus and Dr. Shimon Ben-Shabat, has led to the detection of an additional endocannabinoid with the tongue-twisting name 2-arachidonylglycerol, or 2-AG. As a result of this work, understanding of cannabinoid systems has advanced significantly.
Endocannabinoids are part of the brain’s reward system, helping with the reduction of pain, regulation of emotions, consolidation of memory and the synchronization of movement. Interestingly, cannabinoid receptors outnumber all other receptors in the brain; the endocannabinoid system is active in nearly every other physiological system that has been studied. Therefore, Dr. Mechoulam has concluded that the endocannabinoid system is crucial to communication with and functions of many other bodily systems.
Pharmaceutical companies in the UK and France are researching and developing many new cannabis-based medicines. Carefully conducted trials have shown not only pain-relieving action and growth-retardation in tumors, but efficacy in treating multiple sclerosis and seizure disorders and a host of other medical conditions.
Over just the past few years the pace of cannabinoid research has been steadily increasing. Quite promising are new drugs currently being developed that both activate and deactivate cannabinoid receptors in the brain. Pain management, neuroprotective treatment for head trauma and stroke, and appetite regulation are just a few of the applications now being studied.
Most recently, one of the synthetic compounds (HU-211) from Dr. Mechoulam’s lab has completed phase 2 clinical trials against head trauma with evidence of a neuroprotective effect. The pace of cannabinoid research has certainly been accelerating over the past few years, and Dr. Mechoulam thinks these new drugs are just the tip of the iceberg.
Learn more about Dr. Raphael Mechoulam and his outstanding accomplishments for medical cannabis patients. See David Jay Brown’s full
report on his interview with Dr. Mechoulam, on which this article is based, at http://mavericksofthemind.com/dr-raphael-mechoulam.
