Marijuana (Cannabis)

Marijuana vs. Hemp

What is the difference between Marijuana and Hemp?

The short answer is that they are quite different, with distinct difference in appearance, growth patterns, legal implications and, especially, pharmacologic properties. For more about the differences between marijuana and hemp, see below.

 

Links to other Pertinent Educational Pages:

Links to ALL Marijuana Educational Pages

Marijuana – Botanical

 

The medical information on this site is provided as a resource for information only, and is not to be used or relied upon for any diagnostic or treatment purposes and is not intended to create any patient-physician relationship.  Readers are advised to seek professional guidance regarding the diagnosis and treatment of their medical concerns.

 

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Note: The distinction between “marijuana” and “hemp” has historically been confusing. While until 2018, the distinction was described as noted below. However, with the passage of the Farm Act in 2018, the federal government provided a new definition of hemp:

 

Hemp Farming Act 2018

  1. Removed hemp for the US list of scheduled substances.
  2. Did not remove hemp-derived cannabinoids from the list of scheduled I substances.
  3. Amended the definition of marijuana by including an exemption for hemp, defined as “any part” of the Cannabis sativa L. plant containing no more than 0.3% THC.

Marijuana vs Hemp

Within the kingdom of plants, the Cannabaceae family includes the genus Cannabis; included in this genus are Cannabis ruderalis (hemp) along with the marijuana subspecies cannabis sativa and cannabis indica, each of which have multiple varieties. In turn, each variety has its unique content of pharmacologically active agents including the cannabinoids THC, CBD and others. Since hemp and marijuana both derive from the Cannabis genus, they do share certain similarities. However, due to each plant’s biological structure, they have several very distinct and crucial differences.

Appearance

Hemp has skinnier leaves, concentrated at the top with fewer branches aand leaves at the lower part of the plant. While marijuana looks like a short fat bush, hemp is typically skinnier and taller (up to 20 ft).  Hemp and marijuana clearly look very different from one another.

 

Chemical Makeup

The main difference between hemp and marijuana is there chemical composition, specifically in their tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content. THC is the cannabinoid compound responsible for marijuana’s psychological effects along with many of the medical benefits. Marijuana generally contains anywhere from 5-20% and even up to 25-30% THC content. Hemp on the other hand, has a maximum THC content of only 0.3% or less and as such, hemp offers no “high” effects. However, hemp like marijuana does contain other cannabinoids, especially cannabidiol (CBD).

 

Legality

As a result of paranoid and uninformed politicians including President Nixon and the “War on Drugs,” hemp was initially grouped with all Cannabis species and banned in 1970 as a Schedule I Drug under the Controlled Substances Act. In most of the United States, the allowed THC-content for hemp to be classified as legal is 0.3%, while in much of the rest of the world, the allowed THC-content is 0.2%. Because it contains minimal THC, hemp is now legal to grow and is used in many industial applications such as paper, clothing, building materials, biofuel, food products, oils and more. Because of its high CBD content, hemp is also used to produce a wide variety of THC-free CBD pharmaceutical products.

Resources:

National Academy of Sciences

The Health Effects of Cannabis and Cannabinoids: The Current State of Evidence and Recommendations for Research

 

These lay-person websites appear to be good resources for exploring medical marijuana:

  1. www.GreenCamp.com
  2. www.Healer.com
  3. www.MedicalJane.com
  4. www.ProjectCBD.org

 

 

References:

Epidiolex (cannabidiol)

  1. FDA approves CBD drug – Epidiolex – The Washington Post

Marinol (dronabinol)

  1. Marinol – dronabinol

 

 

Medical Marijuana – Federal Law

  1. The legal status of cannabis (marijuana) and cannabidiol (CBD) under U.S. law – 2017

Medical Marijuana – Louisiana Law

  1. Louisiana-2016-SB180-Chaptered
  2. HOUSE BILL NO. 225 – 2017 Regular Session
  3. Louisiana medical marijuana expansion bill signed into law – May 20, 2016
  4. Now in Effect, Louisiana Medical Marijuana Law Shields Patients and Caregivers from Prosecution – Aug 5, 2016
  5. Louisiana-2016-SB180-Chaptered

Cannabidiol (CBD)- Overviews

  1. CANNABIDIOL (CBD) Pre-Review Report WHO 2017
  2. Cannabidiol – State of the art and new challenges for therapeutic applications. – 2017 PubMed – NCBI

 

CBD – Anxiety

  1. Overlapping Mechanisms of Stress-Induced Relapse to Opioid Use Disorder and Chronic Pain – Clinical Implications – 2016
  2. Cannabidiol Modulates Fear Memory Formation Through Interactions with Serotonergic Transmission in the Mesolimbic System – 2016
  3. Cannabidiol regulation of emotion and emotional memory processing: relevance for treating anxiety-related and substance abuse disorders. – PubMed – NCBI
  4. Review of the neurological benefits of phytocannabinoids – 2018
  5. Plastic and Neuroprotective Mechanisms Involved in the Therapeutic Effects of Cannabidiol in Psychiatric Disorders – 2017
  6. Neural basis of anxiolytic effects of cannabidiol (CBD) in generalized social anxiety disorder: a preliminary report. – PubMed – NCBI
  7. Evidences for the Anti-panic Actions of Cannabidiol – 2017
  8. Cannabidiol, a Cannabis sativa constituent, as an anxiolytic drug – 2012
  9. Cannabidiol Reduces the Anxiety Induced by Simulated Public Speaking in Treatment-Naïve Social Phobia Patients – 2011

 

CBD – Interaction with THC

  1. Cannabidiol: a promising drug for neurodegenerative disorders? – PubMed – NCBI
  2. Oral Cannabidiol does not Alter the Subjective, Reinforcing or Cardiovascular Effects of Smoked Cannabis – 2015
  3. Taming THC – potential cannabis synergy and phytocannabinoid-terpenoid entourage effects – 2011
  4. A tale of two cannabinoids: the therapeutic rationale for combining tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol. – PubMed – NCBI

 

 

CBD – Metabolites

  1. Human Metabolites of Cannabidiol – A Review on Their Formation, Biological Activity, and Relevance in Therapy – 2016

 

CBD – Drug-Metabolic Interactions

  1. Cannabidiol, a Major Phytocannabinoid, As a Potent Atypical Inhibitor for CYP2D6 – 2011
  2. The Effect of CYP2D6 Drug-Drug Interactions on Hydrocodone Effectiveness – 2014 
  3. Characterization of P-glycoprotein Inhibition by Major Cannabinoids from Marijuana – 2006

Medical Marijuana – Prescribing Guidelines

  1. Simplified guideline for prescribing medical cannabinoids in primary care – Canadian Family Physician – 2018
  2. Physician Recommendation of Medical Cannabis Guidelines Calif Medical Assoc – 2011
  3. Prescribing smoked cannabis for chronic noncancer pain. Preliminary recommendations – Canadian Family Physician – 2014

 

Medical Marijuana – Opioids

  1. Use-of-Prescription-Pain-Medications-Among-Medical-Cannabis-Patients
  2. It is premature to expand access to medicinal cannabis in hopes of solving the US opioid crisis – 2018
  3. Patterns of medicinal cannabis use, strain analysis, and substitution effect among patients with migraine, headache, arthritis, and chronic pain in a medicinal cannabis cohort – 2018
  4. Patterns and correlates of medical cannabis use for pain among patients prescribed long-term opioid therapy. – PubMed – NCBI
  5. Associations between medical cannabis and prescription opioid use in chronic pain patients – A preliminary cohort study – 2017
  6. The prevalence and significance of cannabis use in patients prescribed chronic opioid therapy: a review of the extant literature. – PubMed – NCBI
  7. The use of cannabis in response to the opioid crisis: A review of the literature. – PubMed – NCBI
  8. Medical Cannabis Laws and Opioid Analgesic Overdose Mortality in the United States, 1999–2010 – 2014
  9. Rationale for cannabis-based interventions in the opioid overdose crisis – 2017
  10. Cannabis and the Opioid Crisis – 2018
  11. Impact of co-administration of oxycodone and smoked cannabis on analgesia and abuse liability. – PubMed – NCBI
  12. Cannabinoid–Opioid Interaction in Chronic Pain
  13. Synergistic interactions between cannabinoid and opioid analgesics. – PubMed – NCBI
  14. FDA approves CBD drug – Epidiolex – The Washington Post

Medical Marijuana, Chronic Pain – Cannabinoids & Palmitoylethanolamide

  1. Therapeutic utility of palmitoylethanolamide in the treatment of neuropathic pain associated with various pathological conditions – a case series – 2012
  2. Palmitoylethanolamide, a naturally occurring lipid, is an orally effective intestinal anti-inflammatory agent – 2013
  3. Cannabinoid-based drugs targeting CB1 and TRPV1, the sympathetic nervous system, and arthritis – 2015
  4. Fatty acid amide hydrolase: biochemistry, pharmacology, and therapeutic possibilities for an enzyme hydrolyzing anandamide, 2-arachidonoylglycerol,… – PubMed – NCBI 2001
  5. Endocannabinoid-related compounds in gastrointestinal diseases – 2018
  6. ‘Entourage’ effects of N-palmitoylethanolamide and N-oleoylethanolamide on vasorelaxation to anandamide occur through TRPV1 receptors – 2008
  7. Medical Cannabis and Cannabinoids- An Option for the Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Cancer of the Colon? – 2018
  8. Effects of homologues and analogues of palmitoylethanolamide upon the inactivation of the endocannabinoid anandamide – 2001
  9. Phytocannabinoids beyond the Cannabis plant – do they exist? – 2010
  10. Palmitoylethanolamide, endocannabinoids and related cannabimimetic compounds in protection against tissue inflammation and pain: potential use in c… – PubMed – NCBI
  11. Cannabinoids as pharmacotherapies for neuropathic pain – from the bench to the bedside. – 2009
  12. Correction – Effect of a new formulation of micronized and ultramicronized N-palmitoylethanolamine in a tibia fracture mouse model of complex regional pain syndrome – 2018
  13. Palmitoylethanolamide induces microglia changes associated with increased migration and phagocytic activity – involvement of the CB2 receptor – 2017
  14. Mast cells, glia and neuroinflammation – partners in crime? – 2013
  15. A Pharmacological Rationale to Reduce the Incidence of Opioid Induced Tolerance and Hyperalgesia – A Review – 2018

Medical Marijuana –Misc

  1. A tale of two cannabinoids: the therapeutic rationale for combining tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabidiol. – PubMed – NCBI
  2. Cannabis and cannabis extracts – greater than the sum of their parts? – 2001
  3. Medical cannabis and mental health: A guided systematic review. 2016 – PubMed – NCBI
  4. Epidemiological characteristics, safety and efficacy of medical cannabis in the elderly. – PubMed – NCBI
  5. Cannabis-conclusions – 2017 National Academy of Sciences
  6. Cannabis-chapter-highlights – 2017 National Academy of Sciences
  7. Cannabis-report-highlights – 2017 National Academy of Sciences
  8. Clinical Endocannabinoid Deficiency (CECD): Can this Concept Explain Therapeutic Bene ts of Cannabis in Migraine, Fibromyalgia, Irritable Bowel Syndrome and other Treatment-Resistant Conditions?-2004
  9. Marijuana use and the risk of lung and upper aerodigestive tract cancers: results of a population-based case-control study. – PubMed – NCBI
  10. Cannabis use and cognitive function: 8-year trajectory in a young adult cohort. – PubMed – NCBI
  11. Cannabinoids for Medical Use: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. – PubMed – NCBI
  12. Cannabinoids and Cytochrome P450 Interactions. – PubMed – NCBI Pharmacogenetics of Cannabinoids – 2018
  13. Systematic review of systematic reviews for medical cannabinoids – 2018
  14. Adverse effects of medical cannabinoids – a systematic review – 2008
  15. Cannabimimetic effects modulated by cholinergic compounds. – PubMed – NCBI
  16. Antagonism of marihuana effects by indomethacin in humans. – PubMed – NCBI
  17. Pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of cannabinoids. – PubMed – NCBI
  18. Clinical Pharmacodynamics of Cannabinoids – 2004
  19. Affinity and Efficacy Studies of Tetrahydrocannabinolic Acid A at Cannabinoid Receptor Types One and Two. – 2017
  20. Quality Control of Traditional Cannabis Tinctures – Pattern, Markers, and Stability – 2016
  21. Exogenous cannabinoids as substrates, inhibitors, and inducers of human drug metabolizing enzymes: a systematic review. – PubMed – NCBI
  22. Pharmacology of Cannabinoids
  23. Current-status-and-future-of-cannabis-research-Clin-Researcher-2015
  24. Medical Marijuana for Treatment of Chronic Pain and Other Medical and Psychiatric Problems – A Clinical Review – 2015

 

Medical Marijuana – Product Evaluation

  1. The Cannabinoid Content of Legal Cannabis in Washington State Varies Systematically Across Testing Facilities and Popular Consumer Products – 2018
  2. Quality Control of Traditional Cannabis Tinctures – Pattern, Markers, and Stability – 2016

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