Cannabis and Parkinson's Disease
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Parkinson’s disease is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder, affecting more than 1 million Americans at a cost to society of more than $50 Billion dollars, over R912 Billion in South Africa.
Parkinson’s Disease symptoms include sleep disturbances such as insomnia, sleep fragmentation and REM sleep behaviour disorder (RBD), cognitive changes, depression, anxiety, hallucinations, hyposmia, pain, and autonomic dysfunction (constipation, orthostatic hypotension, and urinary incontinence)
Preclinical evidence suggests that cannabis could be widely beneficial to neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s Disease - A small survey in Colorado, USA of individuals with Parkinson’s Disease found that the handful of identified cannabis users reported it to be among the most effective of complementary therapies.
Respondents who reported using cannabis for general or for specific Parkinson’s Disease symptoms were also asked about perceived symptom improvement. The most common non-motor symptoms that cannabis users were trying to treat were anxiety, pain and sleep disorders. The most common motor symptoms that cannabis users were trying to treat included stiffness and tremors, the majority of these users reported that cannabis use led to a moderate or considerable improvement in the severity of their anxiety, pain, sleep disorders, stiffness, and tremors.
A large survey of individuals with Parkinson’s Disease regarding their attitudes and knowledge of cannabis revealed that 1 in 5 of people with Parkinson’s Disease are current cannabis users.
Consult with your physician or a medical practitioner before using cannabis as an alternative medicine
Study done by; Megan P Feeney, Danny Bega, Benzi M Kluger, A Jon Stoessl, Christiana M Evers, Rebeca De Leon, James C Beck