IT IS WAY HIGHER THAN HIGH TIME, INDIA! AWAKE! LEGALIZE CANNABIS!

7,84,821 cancer deaths in a single year, in just one country! A staggering number! Now these aren’t my figures. The W.H.O that tallied the number of ‘registered’ cancer deaths in India in 2018 published the above — unregistered cancer deaths added would have easily pushed the tally to over a million. And the W.H.O estimates the number to triple by mid-2021!

We have two key points to consider here.

• Conventional allopathic treatment did not help the overwhelming number who succumbed to a variety of cancers. The patients without choice underwent the trauma of repeated sessions of chemotherapy with its hoard of side-effects while paying hefty prices for their treatment, including hospitalization and the cancer drugs they had to take, which ran into several thousands of rupees, then helplessly passed on.
• They died with no alternative in managing their cancer pain, the majority unwillingly ingesting synthetic habit-forming opioid drugs like Tramadol and its derivatives, or Morphine to combat pain.

I bring your attention to the second point — Pain Management.

In India, oncologists and cancer doctors routinely prescribe opioid painkillers like Tramadol or Morphine to cancer patients to manage their pain — despite these being addictive drugs that come with a lengthy list of side effects.

While developed countries across the globe, owing to years of research, undeniable clinical evidence, and continued patient feedback have wholeheartedly embraced Cannabis to manage cancer pain and a multitude of syndromes efficiently; the US and Canada lead the pack, having decriminalized and legalized the use of the herb both medically and recreationally; and while the UN’s landmark vote approving Cannabis and its therapeutic uses following a series of recommendations from the W.H.O on the benefits of the herb administered to cancer patients now lists Cannabis as a Schedule-I drug instead of the earlier Schedule-IV (having previously listed it alongside Heroin and Cocaine), India still has a length to go from bringing Cannabis into legal mainstream use for cancer patients and others suffering from varied chronic ailments and pain.

How does Cannabis manage pain?

To understand how Cannabis works toward managing pain, we must grasp a little about the ‘endocannabinoid system’ in the human body. The human body has two predominant cannabinoid receptors, the CB1 and CB2 receptors, found mainly within the central and peripheral nervous systems. Among the two, the CB2 receptors are particularly centralized in our immune cells. Our bodies generate their own cannabinoids that work on these receptors, side by side making up the endocannabinoid system, and this takes care of minor pains which humans sustain from time to time because of different health conditions. However, chronic health issues demand more amounts of cannabinoids than what the body produces to combat pain. And cancer pain calls for even greater amounts of cannabinoids, which the body simply cannot produce.

When cannabinoids enter the body, they attach to and stimulate the cannabinoid receptors in the brain, easing pain for considerable lengths of time, usually spanning 4–6 hours, sometimes more. Medical Cannabis products contain cannabinoids, other than varying compounds from the Cannabis plant with multiple health benefits and uses. The cannabinoids used in medicine are THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol), both being found in differing percentages in different strains of Cannabis, and both being highly competent in combating cancer associated pain.

Well, so much for pain linked with cancer. Is Cannabis effective for health conditions other than cancer pain? The answer is a thumping yes, and immensely effective for a multitude of health conditions.

What are the most common health conditions being treated in the US and other developed countries by doctors prescribing Cannabis to patients?

Here are a few.

ADHD (inattention, hyperactivity, impulsiveness), Anorexia, HIV/AIDS, Arthritis (swelling in the joints, stiffness, decreased range of motion), Cachexia (muscle wastage) owing to cancer or AIDS, Headaches and Migraines, Back pain, Acute and Traumatic injury, Sinus pain, Tendinitis, Carpel tunnel syndrome, Epilepsy/Seizures, Glaucoma, PTSD, Anxiety and Depression, Insomnia (Transient/Acute/Chronic), Fibromyalgia, Multiple Sclerosis — the list simply goes on!

The best part? Cannabis has negligible contra effects on the body because the body produces cannabinoids. Cannabis is a natural and far safer alternative to synthetic drugs with their lengthy record of lethal side effects.

Now, for the billion-dollar question. Does India stand to gain economically by legalizing Cannabis?

A big-time ‘YES’ for an answer would be an understatement. Here’s a perspective. In 2019, the Cannabis Tax Revenue comprising only 7 States of the US that included California, Washington, Colorado, Oregon, Nevada, Alaska, and Massachusetts tallied to a little over $1557 million, or Rupees 11,427 Crores. A noteworthy sum, I dare state! In India, we have 28 States, and the country boasts a population of 1.38 billion people!

To legalize Cannabis in India would mean easing the pain of millions of patients while garnering a striking annual amount in taxes. So what’s taking the Indian government so long? Time to seriously wake up, Indians!