Have you ever wondered why people say they feel ‘high’ when they use cannabis? This feeling is not well explained in science. It’s often linked to both feeling too relaxed and euphoric.
People usually think of getting ‘high’ as the main goal of using cannabis for fun. But what about for medical purposes? Is it a good thing or a bad thing?
A new study titled “Understanding feeling ‘high’ and its role in medical cannabis patient outcomes,” looks into this. The researchers from The University of New Mexico worked with Releaf App.
They found out that patients who reported feeling ‘high’ experienced a 7.7% greater relief from their symptoms.
They also felt more positive effects like being relaxed and peaceful. However, there were also more reports of negative side effects.
Understanding the Study
The study involved almost 2,000 patients who used medical cannabis. They recorded more than 16,000 sessions of using cannabis flower. About 49% of these participants said they felt ‘high’.
The feeling was closely linked with different side effects. The positive ones included feeling chill and happy. Negative ones included having a dry mouth and red eyes.
The study also found a strong link between feeling ‘high’ and greater relief from symptoms.
This was even after considering the levels of THC and CBD, the amount taken, how it was consumed (pipe, joint, vaporizer), and how severe the symptoms were at the start.
This shows that the feeling of being ‘high’ could be a fundamental part of using cannabis effectively as medicine.
What About THC Levels?
THC levels had the most significant association with feeling ‘high’. Using a vaporizer instead of burning the cannabis flower was linked with a reduced chance of feeling ‘high’.
While THC levels also predict symptom relief, this study shows that higher THC levels no longer predict symptom relief once feeling ‘high’ is considered.
Basically, higher THC only increases symptom relief if the patient feels ‘high’. However, THC still predicts negative side effects, even after considering whether a patient felt ‘high’.
Who Does This Help?
The study found that this was true for both male and female patients, across different levels of cannabis experience, and for symptoms including anxiety, depression, pain, and fatigue.
However, feeling ‘high’ did not increase symptom relief for people with insomnia.
The link between feeling ‘high’ and improved symptom relief was also weaker in patients over 40. This shows that the relationship varies across different users and uses.
According to the lead author of the study, the results highlight the challenges of using cannabis as medicine.
Cannabis products vary a lot in their makeup, and patients also vary in many ways. Factors that increase symptom relief, like feeling ‘high’ and THC, are linked with increased negative side effects like impairment.
The Future of Cannabis as Medicine
These complexities suggest that the future of using cannabis as medicine could lie in highly customized treatments. Instead of using a standard dose for most patients, it might be better to tailor the treatment to each patient.
So, what does this mean for everyone involved? Doctors should know that feeling ‘high’ is likely an important part of effective medical cannabis treatment for many patients.
Policymakers should understand that what may be considered “recreational” use could lead to unexpected health benefits.
The cannabis industry should be careful with its apparent drive for higher THC levels. THC levels do not increase symptom relief but do increase negative side effects once the feeling of being ‘high’ is considered.
Finally, future researchers should consider the relationship between feeling ‘high’ and patient outcomes for cannabis products beyond flower.
This includes products with higher THC levels and edibles used widely by medical patients. They should also look into the role of other components of cannabis beyond THC and CBD.
If you care about health, please read studies about vitamin D and COVID-19, and cannabis use disorder may be linked to growing number of heart attacks.
For more information about health, please see recent studies about the cause of severe inflammation in COVID-19, and results showing this drug duo may help cure COVID-19.
The study was published in Frontiers in Pharmacology.
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