A couple of years ago the marijuana plant was only known for being able to grow and cultivate as a herb. The only thing we knew about it was that it made you high and was a relatively safe drug compared to others.
There are many different names people use to refer to marijuana, including cannabis, pot, reefer, Mary Jane, Ashes, and herb.
As the years progressed, scientists delved further and further into their research of the marijuana plant and its possible merits. They found that there is a myriad of benefits that we can reap by using this plant in different ways. We don’t just get to use the actual leaf and smoke a joint; we can do wonders with the by-products of the plant as well. One such by-product is CBD which is usually extracted as oil and the benefits that we get from it are endless.
Many nations around the world have taken notice of how useful the marijuana plant is as a whole and how few its side effects are, because of which they have legalized it as a medicinal product and a recreational drug too. Many states in the United States have also either, legalized marijuana, or, are in the process of voting to do so, which will decide whether it will be legalized or not.
When you smoke, or take, marijuana in the right amount, that is, without getting high, you can get a myriad of health benefits from it.
One of the best benefits of marijuana is that it is taking the focus over tobacco. Tobacco is exponentially more harmful than weed. Smoking tobacco causes cancer while marijuana can actually help in treating cancer!
Some people still mix marijuana and tobacco to mellow down their high because they don’t know there are healthier mixer alternatives. For example, Blue Lotus and Passionflower are just a few amongst many interesting alternatives.
Here are some marijuana uses and other benefits:
1. Can Be Used to Manufacture Plastics
One of the most prominent issues in our world today is plastic pollution. Plastics are ruining the environment, and no matter how many steps we take to eliminate plastic from our lives, its use has become so deep-rooted in our lives that there is no way we can get rid of it entirely.
The one plant product that we need to produce plastics is cellulose. The hemp plant has one of the highest concentrations of cellulose in their stalks. You can use the cellulose from this plant instead of from petroleum and oil.
The plastic made from the hemp plant will be much more bio-degradable, greener, and safer to use. Cannabis is also easy to grow in more or less any type of soil, so its growth and cultivation are also quite cheap.
The reason why cannabis is not used for this purpose yet is that many nations and states have still not legalized the use of marijuana which makes the whole process entirely unfeasible.
2. Fights Some Types of Cancer
For the past couple of years, there has been quite a bit of talk regarding how the marijuana plant can help in fighting certain types of cancer cells. There has been some research as well which shows that cannabis oil can slow down and even stop the growth of cancer cells in the body. It has this effect by inhibiting the expression of a dominant gene involved in the spread of cancer.
Of course, there is still a lot of research pending on this subject and marijuana, and cannabis oil needs to be legalized in more states so that research about these benefits can move forward.
Tumors in the lungs, brain, and the breast are more likely to reduce with the help of cannabis as well.
3. Relieves Anxiety and Depression
Anxiety and depression are both spreading like a plague in today’s world. This increase in these conditions is because we are all under constant stress at home or work and we feel as if we don’t have enough time to cope with it all.
Marijuana releases happy hormones in your bloodstream which keep you from getting depressed about anything. Other than that, certain strains of marijuana, particularly those with low doses of THC and high concentrations of CBD, help in relieving anxiety in a lot of people as well.
High doses of marijuana and getting high are responsible for making you paranoid and elevating your anxiety. Make sure that you take it in amounts that don’t make you high or you stick to CBD products like cannabis oil only.
Before marijuana was so common, people used to rely on tobacco for anxiety relief. The problem is that tobacco has many harmful effects, especially compared to marijuana.
Related: Different Ways to Consume CBD You May Not Know
4. Helps with Eating Disorders
If you have ever smoked weed yourself or know people who have smoked weed, one thing you will constantly hear from them is that that they have the “munchies.” Munchies refer to the sudden increase in appetite after smoking or taking an edible of marijuana.
People with eating disorders like anorexia usually have no desire to eat anything. They often have terrible appetites too, and they cannot eat the way normal people do.
So when people who have eating disorders take some herb, they automatically feel that their appetite has increased. Instead of binge eating as recreational smokers do though, people with eating disorders begin eating normally.
5. Relieves Glaucoma
Glaucoma is a disease of the eyeballs in which the intra-ocular pressure on our eyeballs increases and we suffer from blurry vision and an eventual loss of sight. To get rid of this condition in our eyeballs we need to relieve this pressure on our eyeballs.
We can easily get this done with the help of some marijuana. Smoking marijuana relieves the intraocular pressure on your eyeball and forces it to dilate. When your eye relaxes and dilates with the help of weed, there is no glaucoma in your eyes anymore and no risk of losing vision either.
6. Improves Gut Health
There is a plethora of gut diseases and conditions that the marijuana plant can cure. Two of the most significant diseases that benefit from herb include inflammatory bowel disease and Crohn’s disease.
These, along with many other gut problems, arise when our intestines become more permeable to the surrounding bacteria, which makes the bacteria grow and flourish. The compounds of the marijuana plant combined with the cells of the body in such a way that the bacteria stay out of the intestine.
The plant also improves the general health of the gut by optimizing the functions of the intestine.
7. Makes Your Skin Healthy
The extract of the marijuana plant without THC, CBD, is known for being an excellent agent for many skin conditions. And there is not just a single benefit of CBD for your skin; there are plenty!
First of all, CBD oil is very hydrating, and it prevents your skin from drying out. Other than that, it also has anti-aging benefits because it is full of antioxidants.
Other than that, the CBD oil also works wonders for people with acne and acne scars.
You can find CBD oil as the main ingredient in many different skin care items as well.
Related: 7 Beauty Benefits of CBD Oil that You Never Knew
8. Offer Pain Relief
Before medical marijuana, people used to turn to opioids for their pain-relieving needs. Opioids are very harmful in the long run, and many users don’t even survive for very long after.
Cannabis with a low concentration of THC is also equally as great for pain relief as opioids are.
9. Helps You Sleep
Whether you are struggling with nightmares or, simply are unable to sleep at night, a good hit of marijuana can solve all of that for you. It doesn’t have to be a hit; you can simply make weed tea out of the herb leaves and drink it to sleep well at night.
10. Manufacturing Paper
Hemp was used to manufacturing about 90% of the paper in the world until the late 1800s. After that, wood took over the bulk of the paper industry.
Because of the high cellulose concentration in hemp, hemp paper can be considered as superior to the wood-based paper we use today.
