People regard marijuana as a drug, not really the medical one. It makes people get high. But people are not aware that marijuana has its own medical benefits.

According to medterms.com, marijuana is a “common street and recreational drug that comes from the marijuanaplant: the hemp plant cannabis sativa. The pharmacologically active ingredient in marijuana is tetra-hydro-cannabinol (THC). Marijuana is used to heighten perception, affect mood, and relax”.

Marijuana is legal in around 20 states in America. However, most countries in the world regard marijuana as an illegal drug. But as what was mentioned above, it has its own benefits.

The following list may surprise you so read on:

Marijuana Branches Mental Creativity

Researchers found out that that marijuana has mental benefits and that is to increase creativity. Someone’s short-term memory gets worse during the time that he is high but his creativity level increases. A study showed that the person taking marijuana comes up with immediate new creative ideas.

According to wired.com, marijuana allowed people to create related concepts and ideas “seeming to make the brain better at detecting those remote associations that lead to radically new ideas”. Other studies also revealed that marijuana develops one’s verbal fluency or their capability to speak different words.

Marijuana Decreases Anxiety

Harvard Medical School noted that a low dose of marijuana improves someone’s mood. A high dose though can increase anxiety.

Anxiety attack
A man having anxiety attack

Marijuana slows down the formation of Alzheimer’s disease. A research by Kim Janda from the Scripps Research Institute revealed that marijuana “slows down the progression of Alzheimer’s disease”.

The study, which was published in 2006, found that a certain chemical in marijuana named THC decelerates the formation and the development of “amyloid plaques by blocking the enzyme in the brain that makes them. These plaques are what kill brain cells and cause Alzheimer’s”.

Marijuana Treats Glaucoma

Glaucoma is a kind of eye disease that increases the pressure in the eyeball which in turn results to optic nerve damage thus, the loss of vision. The National Eye Institute states that smoked marijuana decreases intraocular pressure (IOP) in people suffering from glaucoma. The study was initiated in the 1970s and proves that marijuana can prevent blindness.

Marijuana Prevents Cancer

A chemical element in marijuana called the CBD prevents cancer from developing. Cancer cells tend to spread quickly in some situations or when not treated early. CBD stops the spread of cancer cells by turning off a gene named Id-1.

Patient using marijuana
Cancer patient using marijuana

Marijuana Increases The Efficiency Of Treatment For Hepatitis C

Hepatitis C is considered as a dangerous disease. The effects of its treatments may not be good and healthy for the body as it includes nausea, loss of appetite, muscle ache and fatigue. Depression may also be an effect and it may last for months. The negative side effects of the treatment are the reasons why most people cannot finish the whole therapy.

A study in the European Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology showed that marijuana helps patients finish their treatment. The drug also increases the treatment’s effectiveness.