The federal government has awarded Rutgers University more than half a million dollars to study the effects of medical cannabis for 5 years.
With medical cannabis use becoming more widely accepted, Rutgers Health researchers are studying its potential physical and mental health effects on patients.
It is funded with a $686,376 grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). The goal is to study the potential therapeutic benefits of medical cannabis. They also want to know about side effects and any possible negative effects it might have.
Feds Fund Medical Cannabis Research to Find Problems
Researchers will examine the risk for Cannabis Use Disorder (CUD). They define it as a complex condition involving a problematic pattern of cannabis use.
So, it does not seem like they want to give medical cannabis the benefit of the doubt.
According to Rutgers, previous research indicates that after using medical cannabis for three months, many will develop CUD.
“There’s been a rapid expansion of medical cannabis use. But we lack clarity related to potential risks,” said Tammy Chung
She is the project’s lead researcher and psychiatry professor at the Rutgers Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research in Newark in North Jersey.
“Should our criteria for assessing cannabis use disorder be the same for therapeutic and recreational users? What type of guidelines should we apply for individuals using cannabis both recreationally and for therapeutic reasons? There are gaps in our knowledge. The answers are important to informing health care decisions.”
While they claimed there are a range of CUD symptoms, including paranoia and memory loss, the most immediate concern is steadily escalating tolerance.
“It’s important to note that not all patients using medical cannabis develop CUD,” Chung said. “We can’t be sure who’s at risk. To provide the best support, we need to learn more about all relevant factors. The more we understand, the more effective our counseling resources can be.”
Rutgers University Studies Marijuana
Participants in the Rutgers Health study must meet New Jersey’s qualifications for legal cannabis use and have a valid New Jersey medicinal cannabis program card* authorizing therapeutic use.
According to the NIH, “there is an urgent need to identify patients who are at-risk for cannabis use disorder, which can occur as an unintended adverse effect of using medicinal cannabis. Importantly, not all patients who use medicinal cannabis develop addiction or a pathological pattern of cannabis use (cannabis use disorder).”
“This longitudinal study will collect new data on cannabis use in relation to health at micro (daily) and macro (follow-up over 2-years) time scales to understand the roles of tolerance and withdrawal (symptoms often experienced when taking medication as recommended) in likelihood of addiction among medicinal cannabis patients, and will identify risk factors for cannabis use disorder as a possible iatrogenic effect of using medicinal cannabis to inform clinical practice guidelines,” they said.
The study seems based on a fear marijuana is addictive. People can be addicted to anything from work to chocolate. However, heroin is a substance few casually use one time, for example. Cannabis is not like heroin.
Everything is best in moderation. But everyone has different limits.
Medical Cannabis Effects Research
Thousands of patients have found relief through the use of medical cannabis. However, cannabis, being a Schedule I narcotic, is said to have no medical value. To make matters worse, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has spent decades preventing legitimate medical marijuana research.
The DEA has been wary of scientists studying cannabis sold for medical purposes in state-legal dispensaries.
So, they have created a very elaborate process which hurts it.
The scientists handling the study are likely unfamiliar with Rick Simpson Oil (RSO), which has been successfully used to stop the spread of cancer and severe inflammation.
The NJ Cannabis Regulatory Commission (NJCRC) has been developing a process to launch state-level medical cannabis research by clinical registrants. They want qualified research institutions to handle that. So, Rutgers is a prime candidate.
Rutgers University and Cannabis
Rutgers University has a range of policies about cannabis. They are eager to protect their federal funding dollars, so they were wary of it initially due to federal marijuana prohibition. So, they have not been tolerant of students consuming cannabis on their property.
It is also a very large organization with multiple campuses and schools with campuses in North, Central, and South Jersey.
So, the Rutgers Law School developed cannabis courses and a certificate program for professionals.
In addition, their agricultural department has dabbled in hemp in the past.
Another department studied the effects and confirmed racism in marijuana policing.
