Banning cannabis concentrates: A world-renowned physician known to use cannabis to treat chronic pain, Dr. Rav Ivker, has just announced that he believes concentrates should be banned.
Ivker told the publication Westword:
"I think they should be illegal. In fact, I hope they become illegal. The only thing they're good for is getting really high. But they're high-risk, and there's really no benefit from them."
The doctor believes that addiction is completely possible with the 'high-potency' marijuana products. Some products, like concentrates, can contain up to 80-95 percent THC.
Addictive?
Ivker went on to explain that substances and behaviors that affect the reward system of the brain have the potential to eventually become addictive. Individuals get used to the habit and then become dependent upon it - that's what forms addictive behaviors.
Think of caffeine addiction: many people get used to the feeling they get when drinking caffeinated beverages that prompts the brain to think it actually needs the substance to survive. The same can be said for sugar, sex, or cigarettes.
"Marijuana, like any substance or behavior that affects the reward system of the brain, has the potential for dependence and possible addiction — and that includes food, sex, and even television. THC releases dopamine in the brain, and dopamine is the neurotransmitter that causes us to have feelings of pleasure, just like food, sex and TV do," Ivker explained.
The highest Sativa strain of marijuana holds around 25-30 percent THC, and that is what most people are smoking. Currently, what people are 'dabbing' is two or three times more potent than typical weed.
Medicinal Cannabis
Despite his negative stance toward concentrates, Ivker still recommends medical marijuana therapy. However, patients must be self-aware of the possibility of addiction. Ivker uses the substance to treat chronic pain, as an alternative to the typical opioid method most often used by physicians.
Ivker has a whole practice where he teaches patients how to use cannabis appropriately as medicine and states he doesn't see addictions forming with his methods.
Do you agree with Ivker? Is banning cannabis concentrates the right move?
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Featured image: Herb
