Overactive Bladder: Can Marijuana Potentially Treat It?
First, a disclaimer. This blog post does not endorse the use of marijuana as it is illegal; however I recently read several studies of interest on this topic.
THC, tretrahydrocannabinol, is the major active ingredient in the marijuana and well known for inducing euphoria and relaxation, as well as sedation and drowsiness. It has been used for treating nerve pain, or neuropathic pain, cancer pain and even convulsions seen with multiple sclerosis.
AJA, Ajulemic acid, is the synthetic equivalent to THC, and is a strong pain reliever an anti-inflammatory but does not have the mind altering effects the THC has. In lab studies, it mimics many of the same properties as the popular anti-inflammatories known as NSAIDs, such a motrin or naproxen. In studies on neuropathic pain and volunteers, AJA did not cause dependency after withdrawal at the end of a one-week treatment period.
So, how would AJA potentially treat overactive bladder? A recent study on rats showed that AJA was able to suppress normal bladder activity and urinary frequency induced by bladder irritants. The researchers believe that AJA blocks the outgoing pain signal from the bladder by one of the receptors it and THC can bind to in the bladder. In the experiment, two different bladder irritants were administered to rats. Bladder pressure and contractions were measured. After injection of AJA, the bladder muscle contraction intervals and bladder pressures were blocked reversing the effect of the irritants.
So what does this mean? AJA is a promising compound that can have potentially broad application in treating the pain and overactivity symptoms that occur in many bladder conditions such as overactive bladder, interstitial cystitis, and perhaps even the bladder pain after surgery or urinary tract infections. One wonders if it many also be effective in not only treating the pain or symptoms after they occur but also given before to prevent them as well. Hmm….
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Dr. Karlovsky - Thanks for providing this information, and making us aware of the studies to determine whether marijuana could prove useful in the treatment of overactive bladder. There seem to be many ancient plant remedies that our ancestors used which have been abandoned by the modern world; perhaps this is one of them. I hope you'll keep us posted as additional information becomes available.
November 11, 2009 - 5:52pmTake good care,
Pat
This Comment
This information, when tacked onto all the other marijuana benefits, help to push towards this country not being so misinformed about marijuana. A a woman's empowerment page there are some other things about marijuana you should know. Smoking marijuana, much like smoking any substance, has been shown to increase the chances of developing cancer. However marijuana has been shown to fight brain cancer by causing autophagy in the cancerous tumor cells. It has also been shown to help combat Alzheimer's disease as well as helping to prevent the spread of Breast Cancer. These findings, on top of many others, help to show that marijuana being illegal is pointless and insipid. Smoking it may be detrimental to your health but as I said all smoking is; smoke doesn't belong in our lungs period. Thankfully though there are many other ways of experiencing the wonderful benefits of marijuana. It's not water soluable but if mixed with a fat (like butter) you can make THC butter. Which you can then use to bake or cook healthy, mildly-psychoactive, foods.
A lot of the information out there about marijuana is incredibly misleading and at times just wrong. You can't overdose on marijuana, it's physically impossible to do so. In order to die from using marijuana you'd have to smoke a half-ton of it in ten minutes; as I said physically impossible. In fact no single death, ever, has been directly linked to marijuana usage. That's not to say no one has ever died from it's use, it's just never been solely marijuana's fault. Aspirin is more deadly than marijuana. As is caffeine, sugar, fats, meat, alcohol, cigarettes, Prozac,Paxil, Wellbutrin, Tylenol, lithium, Dramamine, DXM (cough medicine), and scores of others that are legal and can kill you. In fact it's illegality is only a result of years of misinformation and lobbying from cotton farmers, paper manufacturers and pharmaceutical companies. The marijuana, and hemp, plants are verstile and have thousands of uses. Hemp can be used to make so many products and it's far better for the environment and it's easier to grow.
All of the positive benefits of marijuana are greatly ignored and false-truths are the only reason it's not legal. It is not a gateway drug, it's addictive properties are scant and it does not turn you a raving lunatic (1933's Reefer Madness was just false propaganda. The only reason that marijuana is illegal is because people don't know the actual facts about this "drug"; which has been used for thousands of years. Recently they found marijuana and a pipe that were 1500 years old. And that marijuana was more potent than what we have today.
Another interesting fact is that of all the drugs people take, marijuana is the only one that has it's own receptor in the brain. All the other drugs, like opiates and barbiturates, mimic our receptors to achieve there effects. Marijuana doesn't, our bodies have designed a system to make it's usage even easier and safer. It has also been proven, by a many-years study Britain, that marijuana's effects on memory are greatly exaggerated. After 20 years they found that the only people that suffered memory issues, and they were minor at best, were the ones that were daily smokers for the duration of the study. The people that smoked socially or intermittently showed almost no signs of memory degradation.
As a near-daily smoker myself I can attest to it's lack of negative effects. I have smoked since I was 16 (which I DO NOT abdicate it's usage at that age, our brains and bodies are still developing and at that point marijuana can have a negative effect) and suffer no ills from it. My memory has showed no signs of slowing and in truth I still have a photographic memory.
I hope that I have helped clear up the truth about marijuana, and that maybe now you can see why it should be legal. Remember even it is legalized, it's not like you have to smoke it. And for those that are worried about people driving under the influence, that is and should always be illegal. Considering that tens' of thousands of people die from drunk drivers every year (and 0 from marijuana) the DWI and DUI laws need to be stronger and more enforced. Instead our police force has to waste their time punishing non-criminals for marijuana usage.
For those that are worried about it's legalization causing anarchy in the streets; look at Portugal. They have every drug legalized and there country is strong as ever. Same applies to Amsterdam, which has a lower crime right than most average US Cities. A recent poll found that nearly half of the US is pro-legalization. So for those that are against it, please get the facts and make an informed decision. Marijuana has no legit reason to be illegal and it's illegal status is a joke. Legalizing drugs is the best way to combat the "Drug War", if we take the power of drugs away from criminals and kingpins then we will win this "War." And save BILLIONS of dollars in the process (we could even make a profit of the tax revenue drugs could provide).
Stay informed!
December 4, 2009 - 4:48pmHi Anon - You have a great deal of knowledge about marijuana - thanks so much for taking the time to write in and share with us. The beauty of this site is that we encourage and get a wide variety of opinions on different topics and help increase our mutual awareness.
December 4, 2009 - 6:03pmI happened to see a copy of the "Reefer Madness" movie a few years ago. It was hard to believe that people actually thought the messages in the film were legitimate. In some ways there are many people still clinging to those messages and using them to develop public policy.
Thanks again for contributing to the conversation, and our knowledge.
Pat
I'm just glad to help!
December 4, 2009 - 6:11pmHello! I agree with your comment about 99%, however, smoking marijuana (even heavily) does not increase risk of lung cancer, or harm the lungs in any significant or permanent ways. In fact, THC tends to kill off aging cells and prevents them from becoming cancerous. Also, there are benefits to smoking rather than eating cannabis, mainly you feel the effects faster and the high also wears off quicker (and you can come down on your own as well). However, when you eat it, the effects come slower and are stronger, which isn't great for newer users, and the risk of overdose is greater (a cannabis overdose is not lethal, you into a deep sleep and wake up very hungry).
This being said, inhaling burning plant material is never good for your lung, but there are safer ways to do it rather than the iconic joint. While THC is not water soluble, the stuff that is bad for you lungs is, making bongs (waterpipes), bubblers, and hookahs safer. The safest way to smoke of all is through a vaporizer, however I'm not quite sure how they work.
However, it mainly depends on the person (:
Some citations:
February 15, 2010 - 4:24pmhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/05/25/AR200605...
"Super High Me" which a great documentary on the effects of suddenly stopping cannabis use and then excessively using it.
"The Union: The Business Behind Getting High" which is, in my opinion, the best and the most informative of documentaries.
However, weed smoke is really bad for your throat-- can give you throat cancer.
July 1, 2010 - 8:26amsorry to correct you but in portugal the only decriminalized drug, (not legal) is marijuana. all the other drugs like heroin, cocain, lsd, mdma, etc are ilegal.
February 23, 2010 - 8:14pmAlthough alot of people use it for recreative or medical purpose carrying more than 5g of marijuana can put you in jail (wish it never hapens). but i agree with all that you said and im really happy that people are informed about it and have a correct idea about the bennefits and bad things related to the use of it.
good job
I agree with the posters saying that this helps the marijuana legalization cause. However, why not just use the real thing, rather than use some synthetic? I know, working conditions and all of that, but just think of this. Big Pharma has damaged the world in a rather sever fashion. Example: Opium = natrual substance (yes, it's addictive, but bear with me). Opium + adulteration = Morphine (Also VERY addictive). Morphine + Big Pharma (Bayer, to be exact) = Heroin!! That's right, the world scourge of addiction and destruction was created by BAYER. Worse, it was created as a way to wean people off of MORPHINE ADDICTION! Now, guess what. Big Pharma creates Methadone. Also highly addictive, and used as a way to wean people off of HEROINE! Good grief! Here's the point. If Marijuana works, then use it! If Big Pharma get's a hold of it, then they'll most likely create a monster that will add to way more problems that it solves. They only want to make a pill out of it so they can make even more money, and keep the rest of us ignant Amurikens in the dark about a natural weed that can do the same thing.
December 8, 2009 - 12:23pmIt's not Americans that truly support Big Pharma, it's our corrupt politicians and the lobbyists in their pockets. It's the same reason, even though it's very unhealthy, that dairy and animal farming are supported in this country. Us Americans constantly strive for change, but due to the overwhelming support of religious thoughts, corporations that preserve only their wealth, and politicians that are only concerned with status, prevent actual change from happening. Look at what is going on at Capitol Hill now, a public health option that has a majority support is constantly being stopped. Why? Because of religious institutions that are afraid of social programs, even though they still support Medicare, but a more socialized nation would help to bring an end to religious power and subjugation. That's the only reason change is stopped in this country.
The people with the least amount of proof, with the least amount of facts. with the smallest amount of compassion for their fellow Americans are the ones that get all the attention. If Glenn Beck was standing on a soap-box at a street corner, which his show is exactly that, he would be regarded as a crazy street-preacher. Instead he gets air time. Sarah Palin, who is about as worldly and intelligent as Plymouth Rock, only gets face time because she's mildly attractive and helps the Republican (and religious) demographic to be more appealing. Same applies to all the other talking heads out there. There is a reason that the most honest and trustworthy news anchor works at Comedy Central, none of the 24-hour news networks care about the truth, they just seek to fill the time that they have to air. Which is why we are inundated with celebrity deaths and dramas and news that's better left at local levels, news that only matters to a local stage that is.
The only way this country will ever be fixed, and actual have equal rights, is to shut down the religious fundamentalists and make the news networks accountable for their misinformation and petty lies. Religious people, as is the nature of their beliefs, are hardcore bigots. That bigotry, often times hidden behind religious dogma, is destroying this country and is alienating us from the rest of the world. Especially since so many christians think that: a) we are a christian nation, forgetting that we are actually secular. And b) they act disgusted whenever the words "muslim" or "atheist" pop up. They treat us how they claim they are treated. Hypocrisy knows no bounds, especially when religion is involved. There are those of us out there trying to help, trying to make a difference but our voices and words get snuffed because they disagree with what the religious peoples agenda in this country are. Truth and facts get left at the wayside, while hyperbole and rhetoric are spread like wildfires. That's what truly needs to be stopped. Free speech shouldn't apply to actively spreading lies that seek to only divide and inflame, spread fear and hate, and treat Americans as ignorant fodder.
December 8, 2009 - 1:55pmI am a chronic marijuana user, and am also prescirbed marinol for nausea and apetite problems. I also have a overactive bladder and have found no correlation in my marijuana use to my bladder getting better. I generally smoke multiple times throughout the day to help my body, and wish it would also help with bladder problems unfortunately have not found anything of this sort to work.
December 11, 2009 - 10:14pm