Hello helping mom, welcome to the forum!
My question is about marijuana use. He is under the impression that it can "Cure" his symptoms.
Cannabinoids, the molecules found in cannabis that possess the medicinal properties, are quite powerful at mediating the various symptoms that accompany IBDs. Of the 40+ variants of cannabinoids found in the cannabis, only a few are well understood in their function. There is an increasing amount of scientific literature and experimental science done on cannabis, and it is now quite clear that certain cannabinoids have tremendous healing powers. Are cannabinoids powerful enough to cure Crohn's or Ulcerative colitis? The answer is
no. Crohn's and UC are the result of an immune system that was deprogrammed, and cannabis will not fix or reverse this. So to say cannabis can cure IBD is a misnomer.
However...
There is evidence that suggests massive doses of cannabinoids can induce remission by treating inflammation completely. A pseudo-cure, if you will.
The problem is the doses required to be effective on this level are quite massive. If you were to deliver such high doses on a daily basis by smoking, the damage done to the patient's lungs would be very severe. Smoking cannabis is the absolute worse delivery method for those who medicate on a daily basis. It might be the most practical, but in my personal opinion, it's not worth healing your bowel if you're going to destroy your lungs. Those anecdotal reports that claim to have induced remission involved a daily ingestion of highly potent cannabis oil. Eating the cannabis achieves two things:
1. It permits the delivery of bigger doses of cannabinoids
2. It delivers the cannabinoids directly into the gut, enhancing the anti-inflammatory properties even further
If what he seeks is remission, smoking it is the worse way to go at it.
There is also something else to consider. At 17 years old, your son's brain is not yet fully developed, and his neurons are not yet completely wired and won't be until his early twenties. Why does this matter?
Cannabinoids bind to special receptors in our body called CB1 and CB2. The bulk of those receptors are
A) In our brain
B) In our gut (this explains why cannabis is so good at relieving abdominal pain and why IBD patients are ideal candidates for cannabis use)
The brain involvement is a potential cause for concern in your son's case. Our body produces its own cannabinoids, that are different from those found in the cannabis plant, and each has a different role to play. Some regulate sleep, others digestion, inflammation, and some have a role to play in regulating development.
Some studies have suggested that chronic use of cannabis (the massive doses that would be needed to induce remission in your son certainly qualify as chronic use for the purpose of this discussion) in teenagers can cause developmental problems in the brain. I've read those studies and I remain unconvinced, but there is not enough proof to rule the risk out either.
In the end, it comes down to this:
1) Cannabis helps
2) Smoking is the absolute worse delivery method (vaporizing or eating it is much preferable) in terms of risks vs rewards
3) Your son's age puts him at risk of developing psychiatric diseases with chronic use. How big that risk is is very unclear.
My guess is your son likes to get high (he is 17 after all) and the disease is an excuse to do it. It's like having the cake and eating it too. It alters your consciousness, which is an innate desire in all humans and particularly in teenagers, and it helps with the disease. Win win. For this reason, he probably wouldn't stop using even if you asked. I wouldn't have at his age had I been in his shoes. You can still suggest some positive changes that will reduce risks and increase rewards though.
To begin with, he should really stop smoking it. If he is serious about using cannabis as a medicine and not a recreational drug, he should get himself a vaporizer and/or learn to prepare cannabis edibles.
I hope this helps.
