A new study has shown how cannabis could be an effective treatment option for both pain relief and insomnia, for those looking to avoid prescription and over the counter pain and sleep medications — including opioids.

The study, published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, which looked at 1,000 people taking legalized marijuana in an American state found that among the 65% of people taking cannabis for pain, 80% found it was very or extremely helpful.

This led to 82% of these people being able to reduce, or stop taking over the counter pain medications, and 88% being able to stop taking opioid painkillers.

74% of the 1,000 interviewees bought it to help them sleep — 84% of whom said the marijuana had helped them, and over 83% said that they had since reduced or stopped taking over-the-counter or prescription sleep aids.

The study suggests that cannabis could lower opioid use. However, the researchers caution that more needs to be done to understand the potential therapeutic benefits of cannabis.

«Approximately 20% of American adults suffer from chronic pain, and one in three adults do not get enough sleep,» says Dr Gwen Wurm, Assistant Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

Story Source:
Materials provided by Taylor & Francis Group. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.