Dr. Cali Estes - The Addiction Coach ®

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Using Marijuana to Fight Opiate Addiction

The increasing abuse of Percocet and other opiate drugs is also leading to an increase in heroin use, and skyrocketing the amount of people seeking treatment for opiate dependence.

So with opiate abuse on a major “up rise”, so are the different types of treatment and treatment methods.  One very controversial method is to use marijuana.
Since about the 1970s, THC showed promise as a treatment of opiate dependence and withdrawal.  It is yet to be specifically included for existing medical marijuana laws, despite strong evidence for its benefits.  The use of Cannabis to treat drug dependence is an old idea.  In the late 1800s the Lancet published an article on a fairly successful treatment for opiate addiction, available in the form of a Cannabis tincture.  The use of this plant to treat substance abuse disorders also appears in ancient Indian texts and Ayurvedic literature.  A recent survey of medical marijuana patients suggested that there is a significant population currently using it as an “exit drug” or as a substitute for Alcohol and other drugs.  Intermittent marijuana use has been shown to improve retention in opiate dependence treatment programs.  The active ingredients in Cannabis interact with the endocannabinoid system within our body.  This system consists of receptors, ligands (endocannabinoids), and proteins for synthesis and breakdown of endocannabinoids.  Modern day researchers are studying these receptors and the natural THC-like compounds in our body for the treatment of various aspects of opiate dependence and withdrawal.  For example, researchers in the laboratory of Dr. Aron Lichtman are studying a drug code named JZL-184.  JZL-184 inhibits the proteins that breakdown endocannabinoids, thus increasing the amount of endocannabinoids available to interact with receptors.  In Lichtman’s animal study, high doses of JZL-184 significantly blocked all signs of opioid withdrawal.  As more states pass laws allowing the use of medical marijuana, opiate addiction should be under consideration as a qualifying condition.  In addition to potentially helping a severely afflicted group of people, this would greatly help researchers to overcome the barriers to studying Cannabis and refining the plant as a medicine.  There is a great need for new, effective treatments of opiate addiction that are: non-toxic, have a low addiction potential, and do not cause severe withdrawal symptoms in opiate dependent patients.
Using marijuana to fight opiate addiction may sound odd at first, but after looking at the scientific side of things it seems to be one of the better treatment options, if not the best.

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