Can Marijuana Be a Drug “Substitute”

This is something that’s been a major cause of interest in people. With drug addiction still running super strong, and millions people dealing with this, it’s definitely a burden of at least 1.5% of the entirety of the globe. With the debate about addiction still being something that’s there, with some being chemical, and others being an environmental approach, people are looking for solutions. 

Some people get relief through cold turkey quitting. Others benefit from going to rehab, and also getting less dangerous types of substitutes that are there. Some have explored the idea of using cannabis as a substitute, and it’s something that definitely could help for those who want something that is a good replacement for the more addictive options. Right now though, the results of this are quite unclear. 

Why Use Cannabis as A Substitute 

If you know a lot about cannabis, you probably also know that there isn’t a ton of human trials, and that’s because of the obvious. People are still afraid of cannabis, and they believe that even using this in a harmless, controlled setting will make things bad. But right now, there are some people providing the patients that they have with cannabis to replace different substances which are problematic, since there isn’t much evidence pointing to otherwise. 

However, with different research that harnesses the different subjective experiences, they learned to get some insights. It was something that was studied, and it was found as a way for people to use cannabis as a way to get off drugs that were harder. 

The study got a bunch of baby boomers around the bay area to answer some questions, offer audio recording, and they gave different responses on why they want to have cannabis. Some of the people said that cannabis is less about violent crime and helps with their bad tempers. Others say that it’s safer than other drugs. There are also other users who said that through cannabis substitution, they were able to get back to truly living life, and they definitely favored better compared to the more rigid people from rehab centers. This is an interesting piece of research, but does the science say otherwise? 

Does it help with Painkillers? 

It actually has. With opioids being some of the best painkillers out there, and they do work to reduce discomfort, they come with another problem, and that is addiction. They have a largely profound effect on your brain’s reward centers, and triggers the endorphin release, and it offers your body a chance to have better pleasures and a sense of being. However, this has lead to a big problem. That’s the opioid crisis that’s currently going on, which has led to a ton of addiction, and a ton of deaths, and about two thirds of fatalities out there come from this. And over 10 million older than 12 have misused this, as of recent. 

There are states that have legalized it, and have helped with treating these addictions, providing an alternative to different treatments, and less chance for abusing these substances. So yes, it can help.  It’s actually caused deaths to plummet by up to 25% in some cases, and it’s actually helped lower the deaths that are tried to opioid abuse, especially compared to marijuana. It is something that can help, and it definitely can help with suppressing breathing as well.  It also can help to combat withdrawal as well, and some recent findings have offered a chance to prove this, so it might be something that is indeed, definitely possible with the right dosage.