For the longest time, THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) had a strong negative stigma due to its association with cannabis. It is the main chemical compound found in cannabis plants that provides the psychoactive element, which is what makes you feel high. That is the main reason why cannabis has been illegal up until the last couple of decades.
New scientific research has revealed more evidence regarding the health and medical benefits that THC has to offer. It has also helped us learn more about exactly what THC is, how it works, and what its potential risks are. Now that we know that THC is no riskier for your health than alcohol, while also being more beneficial to your health, regulations surrounding cannabis and THC have slowly been loosened.
If you want to know more about delta-8 THC and how it can help, you should absolutely know about these nine important health benefits, visit this site thehempdoctor.com/product-category/delta-8-thc/
1. Relieves Pain
The most potent and well-known benefit of THC is that it is able to relieve pain. It achieves this by interacting with the endocannabinoid system (ECS) that is found throughout our brains and nervous system. The ECS is responsible for the production of various hormones and neurotransmitters that send signals through our bodies, which regulates several important functions, including the signals associated with pain.
What THC does is bind to the receptors of the ECS, which alters the strength of the signals sent out for pain. If you are experiencing pain, taking THC helps reduce the strength of the pain signals, so the pain is less intense.
2. Helps Muscles Spasticity
For people who have neurological conditions like multiple sclerosis, one of the main physical side effects of the condition is increased muscle spasticity. This refers to the condition when your muscles tighten and contract uncontrollably, and for long periods of time.
This is a symptom that gets worse overtime for people with this condition. THC has been found to help relax the muscles, and reduce the severity of muscle spasticity that patients experience. It can greatly improve their quality of life.
3. Treats Glaucoma
Glaucoma is an eye condition that is characterized by damage to the optic nerve as a result of high pressure in the eye. Over time, that pressure causes the optic nerve to experience pain, and slowly erodes it to the point that you lose eyesight.
One of the other benefits of THC is that it is a powerful anti-inflammatory, so it helps relieve inflammation and pressure. That means people with glaucoma who take THC are able to feel greater pain and pressure relief to manage the condition.
4. Improves Sleep
One of the other ways functions of the body that ECS regulates is sleep. More specifically, it affects your natural circadian rhythm, which among other things is what sends signals to your body to feel sleepy around your usual bedtime.
THC interacts with the ECS to send stronger signals associated with the circadian rhythm, which helps you feel more tired. It also helps remove common barriers to falling asleep, such as pain, stress and discomfort. This is why THC is being used more for people with conditions like insomnia to help them achieve better sleep.
5. Stimulates Appetite
A common issue for people with any health condition is experiencing a loss of appetite. This can be as a direct cause or symptom of their condition, or as a side effect of the treatments or medication they take. The best example of this is people who take radiation treatments for cancer, which can leave the patient with no appetite at all.
That is a big problem, as food and nutrients are what helps a patient recover and stay as healthy as possible. Another thing your circadian rhythms do is send signals to feel hungry, and so taking THC is used by cancer patients to increase how hungry they feel, so they will eat more.
6. Reduces Nausea
Aside from increasing your appetite, THC can also help reduce nausea and vomiting. This is the other main reason why cannabis is used for patients with cancer to deal with the side effects of radiation treatments. THC achieves this by acting as an antiemetic, which prevents the conditions (such as inflammation) associated with the feelings of nausea. These conditions are what lead to you vomiting.
7. May Improve Mental Health
One of the other benefits of cannabinoids in general is their ability to improve your mood by reducing stress, anxiety, and depression. There have been some clinical trials that have shown how certain strains of THC are able to achieve this as well.
However, its psychoactive properties can cause a sense of delusions and increased heart rates. This can actually make any anxiety you are feeling worse. Whether or not your mental health is improved or worsened by THC seems to depend on a mix of the strain you take, and your own individual biological response to it.
8. Helps Cancer Treatments
Being able to improve your appetite and reduce nausea or vomiting are the two main reasons why THC is used to help cancer patients. However, there are signs that it can do even more than that. Some clinical trials have shown signs that cannabinoids may also have anti-cancer properties. In test tube and animal trials, it was found to actually kill cancer cells on its own. While this needs to be confirmed by more in-depth human trials, it is an exciting potential benefit for the future of cancer treatments.
9. Reduces Seizures
One confirmed benefit of THC is being able to reduce seizure activity in people who have a condition like epilepsy. This is very valuable, since epilepsy as a condition has no universal treatment — what works for one person may not work at all for another. For some people, taking a combination of THC and CBD called Sativex has been found to significantly reduce seizure activity in test subjects.
However, like other epilepsy treatments this does not appear to help everyone with epilepsy equally. It does potentially provide help to people who get no help from any other treatments, however. These are by no means the only health benefits that THC can provide, but they are some of the most important. Some are important because they are more universal or common issues, such as pain and lack of sleep.
Others are important because they help improve the quality of life with people who suffer from chronic conditions, like insomnia, glaucoma, epilepsy, and more. If you have a health issue that you think THC can help with, always consult your doctor first.
