Recreational marijuana smokers are said to predominantly use the plant to get a euphoric high. However, that is not the intent of people who use the substance for medical purposes.
Jim Leslie of Karuna Medicinals, Wendy Brisco, owner of Hush Budeez (a medical marijuana dispensary in the Boundary) and Dr. Joel Kalia from Nelson had a booth at the Christina Lake Health Fair on June 1 to educate the public on medical marijuana.
“Medical cannabis patients will find that when they get into using cannabis regularly, they develop a tolerance to the psychoactive effect in the mind so it basically doesn’t affect them anymore, but what they do not get a tolerance to is the medical effect,” said Leslie.
“I think it went really well,” said Brisco. “People were a little hesitant at first, but eventually when the doctor spoke, it kind of opened up people to questions.”
Brisco told the Gazette that Kalia spoke at the fair about the health benefits of medical marijuana including its ability to deaden nerve pain.
“Marijuana is more effective than Gabapentin (used for neuropathic pain),” said Brisco.
Leslie said that beyond alleviating pain, marijuana is applicable for many different conditions.
“Cannabinoids (active principles) in marijuana are so effective at selectively killing cancer cells that they are being utilized as a primary treatment in some cases for people who are fighting aggressive cancer,” said Leslie.
He adds that it also helps with Alzheimer’s, dementia, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease), Huntington’s disease, Parkinson’s and inflammation.
“Marijuana is a very therapeutic wonderful synergy of three basic compounds that provide us relief and stop disease,” he said.
While most people think marijuana and smoking go hand-in-hand, Brisco said there are many alternatives to inhalation, which include vaporization, oral consumption, baked goods, drinks, oils, tonics, topical rubs and wash, and wax bars.
“There are a lot of options to healing your body without getting high,” she said. “One of the big things that I think is changing healing the body is the juice cube, (which has) no psychoactive effects, because it’s cold formulated.”
Brisco said that the number of people in the Boundary using medical marijuana is steadily growing.
“The elderly are getting, I think, discouraged that their medication isn’t working as well as they would hope and they are just a little more open to new ideas,” she said.
“In this area, there are a lot of sick people and a lot of elderly that have a lot of medical conditions, so with this being a big retirement centre I see the need getting greater because people want more control and more choice over their own medication.”
Leslie said that by taking medical marijuana, other medication can be eliminated.
“People come in with multiple pharmaceutical prescriptions and all the side effects that come with it and when they take medical cannabis into their lives properly, they can eliminate many of their drugs, they can live better lives, they can live longer under their own care, they can eat better, feel better and bond with their families,” he said.
In order for anyone to legally use medical marijuana, a doctor’s prescription is required.