Cannabis users have lower ICU admission rates for COVID-19 – Cannabis | weed | marijuana

A preliminary study in the Journal of Cannabis Research suggests that cannabis users have lower ICU admission rates due to COVID-19.

The study states, “Active cannabis users hospitalized with COVID 19 had better clinical outcomes, including less need for intensive care units or mechanical ventilation, compared to non-users.”

Although the study was retrospective and therefore limited in its conclusions, its results are certainly promising. Enough for the researchers to suggest doing more studies that elucidate the effects of cannabis in COVID-19 patients.

People with COVID requiring an intensive care unit (ICU) and ventilators have strained healthcare systems worldwide in 2020 and 2021. And in countries like Canada, the system has not recovered.

So, should governments be promoting cannabinoid therapy as a way to combat COVID-19? Especially now that flu season is approaching? First, let’s look at what the study said.

Details of the study on cannabis and COVID-19

Researchers from the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California examined two hospitals in the Los Angeles area.

Of the 1,831 COVID patients in the study, 69 patients, or 4%, reported using cannabis regularly.

The researchers performed what is known as a retrospective analysis of patient data. A retrospective analysis (or study) is a research method used when the result is already known.

In this example, the researchers knew the hospital had patients with COVID-19. The research aims to determine what factors might have led to the need for an intensive care unit or ventilator versus recovering without one.

The main advantage of this type of research is the ability to quickly answer a question. Someone else has already collected the data. Retrospective analyzes are useful as pilot studies before moving on to a more comprehensive, controlled study.

In the Cannabis and COVID-19 study, researchers compared cannabis and non-cannabis users on NIH COVID-19 severity scores. They also compared ICU admissions, ventilator use, length of hospital stay, need for supplemental oxygen, and in-hospital death.

The study states, “Cannabis users had significantly better outcomes compared to non-users, as reflected in lower NIH scores (5.1 versus 6.0), shorter hospital stays (4 days versus 6 days), lower ICU admission rates ( 12% vs. 31%), and less need for mechanical ventilation (6% vs. 17%). ICU admissions were 12 percentage points lower and intubation rates were 6 percentage points lower in cannabis users.”

Why does cannabis help fight COVID?

Overall, cannabis users fared better

This study isn’t the first to suggest cannabis plays a role in fighting COVID-19. Earlier this year, promising research suggested CBD could reduce or stop COVID infection.

Other studies have also shown that CBD plays a significant role in reducing COVID infections. One study found that the cannabinoids CBGA and CBDA block COVID from entering cells.

The authors of this latest study suggest that cannabis’ anti-inflammatory effects are the reason for its success.

The study says, “Patients with severe COVID-19 have elevated clinical markers of inflammation,” before going on to say:

“Cannabis users were more likely to have lower inflammatory markers upon ingestion compared to non-users. This effect persisted throughout their hospital stay, with cannabis users continuing to have lower markers of inflammation compared to non-users.”

The role of cannabis in reducing inflammation is well known and well studied.

Suppose severe COVID infections result from a person’s higher levels of inflammation. In that case, it makes sense that someone who regularly uses cannabis (an herb known to reduce inflammation) would have an easier time dealing with COVID.

Cannabis mandates coming to Canada?

It’s no secret that Canada’s healthcare system hasn’t survived the pandemic. For two years, the Ontario government routinely shut down a province of 13.6 million people because the system could not serve more than 2,300 people in an ICU at a time.

A year into the pandemic, 1,400 ICU beds were occupied by non-COVID patients, leaving only 900 for COVID patients.

And that in March 2021. You had a whole year to prepare. The Ontario government could have allocated more resources to the healthcare sector rather than arbitrarily shutting down private companies.

But the most significant consequence of the past two years is the two-tier society that governments have been keen to impose on the populace.

Until the Freedom Convoy scared provincial governments into lifting their restrictions, COVID vaccination cards were the norm in Canadian life.

Suppose you had no proof that you received two shots of experimental mRNA gene therapy. In this case, you would not be able to do basic things like eat at a restaurant, watch a movie, work out at the gym, watch a sporting event, play at a casino, etc.

The propaganda was so intense that some tricked their friends and family members into injecting and harassing them.

But now that the consequences of these experimental vaccinations are becoming known, and the fact that they do not prevent transmission or contagion, the idea of ​​national passports has lost its appeal.

But why? “Public health” insisted these vaccination mandates and passports were for our own good.

Following their authoritarian logic, why not have cannabis mandates?

If we are at war and COVID is the enemy then obviously all our principles of a free society no longer apply. Therefore, public health may require governments to force everyone to use cannabis to combat COVID-19.

Cannabis & COVID – Controlled Studies When?

As much as we would like to promote cannabinoid therapy as a way to combat COVID-19, the fact is that there are no double-blind, placebo-controlled studies on the subject.

Until then, we can sponsor this study as it confirms our bias. But what about the observational research that suggests people with “substance use disorders” are more likely to experience adverse effects from COVID-19?

Research of this kind only reveals the bias of the researchers.

But given the promising preliminary studies into cannabis and COVID, we think it’s only a matter of time before conclusive evidence confirms that cannabinoid therapy reduces the severity of COVID-19 infection.

Finally, cannabis treats inflammation. And suppose less inflammation is a significant indicator of how likely you are to survive a flu virus. In that case, governments should be pushing cannabinoid therapy as hard as they’ve pushed vaccines.