HEALTH
ARTICLE
The Endocannabinoid
System - Why Weed
Heals
By MJ Schwader
Due to its legal status in the United States in the past half-century or more,
marijuana has gotten a bad rap. However, those who use cannabis for pain
relief and symptom management tell a different story.
U
nfortunately, humans are hu-
mans, and until there is actual
proof, many have not been open
to the possible benefits of medical
marijuana. That is now beginning
to change with new understand-
ing of its impact on our physiology.
While attempting to determine the negative effects
of marijuana in the 1990’s, the research instead
discovered that our brain and central nervous sys-
tem contain cannabinoid receptors that are re-
sponsible for balancing many of our body’s regula-
tory and immune system functions. This discovery
of the endocannabinoid system (ECS) is the single
most important scientific medical discovery in de-
cades. As our understanding expands, researchers
are coming to realize that the ECS is a master con-
trol system of virtually all physiology. Its effect on
scavenging of oxygen free radicals can be applied
to all disease processes, which explains its wide
medical application.
Due to the federal law against marijuana, the ma-
jority of people in the United States have no clue of
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