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| Pot Helps in Fighting Alzheimer's, Study Says |
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Posted by CN Staff on October 10, 2006 at 06:22:50 PT By Ashton Shurson, The Daily Iowan Source: Daily Iowan 
USA -- While antidrug advertisements may plaster television screens and magazines, a new medical study may add another check to the list of marijuana's beneficial uses.A recent study by the Scripps Research Institute in California found that the active ingredient in the illegal plant - tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC - may halt the progression of Alzheimer's disease. THC helps stop the formation of amyloid plaque, which primarily causes the disease, the report stated. The institute found THC to be " 'a considerably superior inhibitor of [amyloid plaque]' to several currently approved drugs for treating the disease." "While we are certainly not advocating the use of illegal drugs, these findings offer convincing evidence that THC possesses remarkable inhibitory qualities," especially when compared with other medicines available to patients, said Kim Janda, a chemistry professor at Scripps Research, on the institute's website. Although many local doctors haven't researched this subject, some are interested in the topic, they said. "I've never heard of anything like this before," said Daniel Tranel, a UI professor of neurology. "There is a lot of intrigue and promise." The report, which was published in the journal Molecular Pharmaceutics, a publication of the American Chemical Society, said in addition to slowing down the progression of Alzheimer's, THC can also treat symptoms of the disease. Tranel said Alzheimer's is not preventable and that current drugs are "mediocre at best at slowing symptoms in some patients." "If this is replicated and extended, it could be very helpful," he said. Roughly 4.5 million Americans have Alzheimer's; in 2050, experts project that the disease will afflict as many as 16 million people, according to the Alzheimer's Association. The disease - a leading cause of dementia - slowly takes over a person's memory and ability to learn, reason, make judgments, communicate, and carry out daily activities, according to the association. Currently, recreational marijuana use is illegal in all states, but medicinal marijuana is legal in 11 states (none of which are named Iowa). It can help ease pain and nausea in cancer patients, and Tranel said it can also stimulate appetite. Locally, many students use marijuana for personal reasons, and many favor legalizing the drug. UI sophomore Adam Filarski, who created the Facebook group "I Heart Blunts," supports legalizing marijuana, although he is not very active in the fight. "The government spends so much money promoting illegalization of it, and it could be" spending it on other things, he said. "It has proven no reason people shouldn't be allowed to do that. The government needs to let people make certain decisions." Source: Daily Iowan, The (IA Edu) Related Articles: Marijuana May Stave Off Alzheimer's: Study Marijuana's Key Ingredient May Fight Alzheimers Marijuana Ingredient May Help Alzheimers Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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| Comment #4 posted by FoM on October 10, 2006 at 08:59:28 PT |
| I'm listening to Neil Young as usual and he isn't having any memory problems. I think people who don't march to th beat of they system very well do better then those that do. Mick Jagger and Dick Chaney are close in age. Which one seems healthier? Dick Chaney's heart has been bad for a long time. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #3 posted by Hope on October 10, 2006 at 08:45:24 PT |
| In fact, I know a family that has the real...and the really bad Alzheimers that's inherited and can strike in their late thirties and early forties. So far....the members of the family who are about my age....my Generation...have not been affected. That's amazing. It's like watching everyone, waiting for the shoe to drop. It's terrible...but they have all passed into their fifties now and so far...maybe a quirk...but none of them shows any signs of degeneration. That's wonderful I think. I don't know if has to do with cannabis...but a few of them, in this generation, have been known to toke a little now and then, on occasion, and they're pushing sixty and one is pushing seventy and they are, holding my breath, all ok. I don't know a single marijuana smoker who has Alzheimers or any form of dementia that I know of, and, like I said, this family that I know, that has been afflicted with the inherited form of Alzheimers for several generations....seems to be skipping this generation. Yay! Of course...I don't know that cannabis has anything to do with it...but with these type reports...I'm wondering. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #2 posted by FoM on October 10, 2006 at 07:25:26 PT |
| I will be 59 soon and I don't know of anyone so far with any memory problems but we will know more in about 10 years since dementia sometimes doesn't start until a person is in their 60s. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by Storm Crow on October 10, 2006 at 06:54:51 PT |
| OK, we all have read the article how pot may cure or prevent Alzheimer's disease. I'm 59- the age where things like this study become more important. My question is "Do hippies get Alzheimer's?" None of the older pot smokers that I know of have any symptoms that I can see. I am curious if any of the other older stoners (or young un's with toking parents or grandparents) have made the same observation? It would make an interesting study- I might just print and pass the posts on to my cannabis doctor (I'm in California and am a legal MMJ user). [ Post Comment ] |
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