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Adult use, or recreational use, cannabis will be legal for purchase as of Oct. 17, 2018.  On the surface, one would believe this to be a great step in the fight to destigmatize cannabis use and increase the ease of access for patients requiring cannabis as part of their treatment plan, but that is not the case.  Although the legalization of cannabis could lead to more studies conducted on the use of cannabis for various medical conditions limitations and barriers for patients stand to be increased under the new adult-use measures. It is first important to clarify that medicinal cannabis and adult-use cannabis are very different. Recreational cannabis will not have the same makeup on a consistent basis as medical cannabis does- and so will not be a suitable substitute for a medical need. Medical cannabis is often curated and different strains and applications are recommended based on the properties…

Over half a million Canadians live with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, with approximately 250,000 being diagnosed every year.  This disease is aggressively running through our country’s health care costs, research dollars, and most importantly, the quality of life of every sufferer and their caregivers.  Current medications in place can help delay the disease progression but they come with some detrimental side effects that have been known to be life-threatening. Recent studies show that the use of medicinal cannabinoids may be the more effective alternative to slowing the disease progression and giving dementia sufferers and their loved ones a life worth living. Research has shown that cannabinoids have been able to provide a neuroprotective layer around the brain’s millions of neurons that transmit messages across our bodies, and that are the hardest hit by Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.  Cannabinoids can protect neurons from beta-amyloids, a chemical (also known as plaque) that…

In 2016, Stats Canada reported that approximately 6.1 million people in Canada were suffering from a form of arthritis; that’s 20.6% of Canada’s total population. With the multitude of possible treatments to help control the pain a patient with arthritis has to live with on a daily basis, most of which are pharmaceutical in nature and some of which are dangerously addictive, many patients are turning to other forms of pain control to help them live the quality lives they deserve to live. The emergence of the use of medicinal cannabis as part of a treatment plan for arthritis pain is significant. One study performed in 2015 has shown that a Cannabidiol (CBD) gel preparation for topical use can help relieve symptoms of arthritis pain with no significant side effects. Another study performed in 2017 has shown that taking prophylactic CBD may be a safe, useful therapeutic treatment for osteoarthritis…