Ethan_Russo

What cannabis does do is reduce REM (dreaming) sleep. This is helpful for those with intrusive nightmares, as in post-traumatic stress disorder. In general, cannabis used medicinally helps sleep quite effectively by reducing symptoms of pain, spasm, etc., that tend to disrupt it. You can search this page for an article on cannabinoid and sleep: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ethan_Russo/publications

Yes, this came from the sum of the evidence of myrcene being sedating in animal models, plus work done in humans with pure THC and pure myrcene. That is anecdotal evidence, however, that we hope to confirm in double-blind randomized clinical trials. Here is a link to an article: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1476-5381.2011.01238.x/epdf

Strain names would be important if they were consistent across the industry, but that is certainly not the case. Hopefully, someday, the medical or even recreational consumer will have access to reliable lab assays stating cannabinoid and terpenoid content of the material.

In the scheme of things, cannabis is less addictive than cigarettes, alcohol, opioids, amphetamines or cocaine. There are people who develop chronic use, would like to stop, but find that they cannot. The figure in the literature is that 9% of people who start cannabis will develop dependency, but at least in the USA, these figures are skewed by the fact that over 50% of people in treatment for cannabis dependence are there by court order. Concentrates, and oils are much more likely to produce tolerance and other problems. The faster a drug gets in (e.g, inhalation) the more rapidly it reaches the brain, producing greater intoxication and the possibility of reinforcement.

This is a very complex topic. TBI is a multi-pronged challenge, producing migraine-like headaches, dizziness, nausea, memory problems, emotional lability, etc. It is my experience as a neurologist that very low doses of cannabis help with various symptoms. Additionally, both THC and CBD produce neuroprotective effects that could be helpful. Anecdotally, some football players with chronic traumatic encephalopathy report benefit, as well. No formal studies have been done.

There would be if there were reliable assays on the same material, not on something else that was tested 6 months ago.