Arthritis and Marijuana Use

It is estimated that over 30 million people suffer from arthritis each year. Arthritis is a painful condition that can affect your joints and the ability to use them. Many with severe joint pain find that it prohibits them from doing the activities they love and confines many to relying on stair lifts and hand rails just to move from one room in their home to another.

While there are many treatments available for this condition, medical research has yet to find a definite and effective cure that reverses the symptoms - most treatments are focused mainly on pain relief medications or taking supplements that can help with rebuilding cartilage. For this reason it is not surprising that some may be interested in learning how marijuana, a natural narcotic derived from the cannabis plant can be used in treating their pain.

There has been a lot of controversy over the use of this plant for treating illness and disease as well as its recreational use which can be habit forming and potentially detrimental effects. Marijuana is also illegal to use in many parts of the world, making it difficult to obtain and putting anyone at risk who uses it for legal punishment which can include fines and jail sentencing.

Limited research has been done to learn the effects of using the drug in treating joint conditions and as an alternative for other available prescription pain relievers. It is still often a debate whether smoking weed is habit forming or addictive, and if so whether these disadvantages would make it no better of an alternative than existing treatments.

While many would expect that addiction to weed would occur only in teenagers and young adults, a surprisingly increasing amount of people who are using it as a treatment for chronic pain are also finding themselves becoming dependent on the drug. For many it is a toss up between choosing over drug dependency or being dependent on friends and family to help them with the daily tasks in life.

It may be several more years before we finally know the answer to how to treat and cure arthritic symptoms. If you believe that you may have arthritis or the pain has become severe, there are many options available to explore and talk about with your doctor. Your doctor should be the most up to date and best resource for learning about ways to cope with your condition and adapt your lifestyle so you can enjoy life to the fullest.