Acute cannabis toxicity results in difficulty with coordination, decreased muscle strength, decreased hand steadiness, postural hypotension, lethargy, decreased concentration, slowed reaction time, slurred speech, and conjunctival injection. Large doses of THC may produce confusion, amnesia, delusions, hallucinations, anxiety, and agitation, but most episodes remit rapidly. Long-term users may experience paranoia, panic disorder, fear, or dysphoria.
==Health benefits and uses of Cannabinoids==
Cannabis preparations have been used to relieve nausea, improve appetite and reduce pain for thousands of years.1 The development of synthetic drugs in the 20th century supplanted these and other herbal remedies, but in the past several decades there has been a resurgence of interest in using cannabis and cannabinoid preparations for medical purposes. There is evidence from controlled trials that cannabinoids are effective in relieving nausea and vomiting, alleviating acute pain and improving appetite in people with HIV-related disorders. A number of synthetic cannabinoids (e.g., dronabinol) have been approved for medical use in Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States. More recently, a cannabis extract (Sativex) has been provisionally approved in Canada for the treatment of multiple sclerosis. Not all patients have found that the drugs relieve their symptoms, primarily because they find it difficult to control the desired dose of orally administered cannabinoids.2,3 In 2001, the Canadian government responded to demands to allow medical use of smoked cannabis, if authorized by a doctor, among patients experiencing severe symptoms related to cancer, HIV infection, multiple sclerosis and epilepsy.4 Symptoms include nausea, pain, weight loss and persistent muscle spasms and seizures. This decision was made in the absence of strong evidence supporting the efficacy of cannabinoids in many of these applications.
==Plant Sources of Cannabinoids==
Cannabis is not the only plant that contains medically beneficial cannabinoids, although it has driven the research to understand the powerful therapeutic properties of these plant compounds. In actuality, there are several plants that are also rich in cannabinoids and benefit the body’s endocannabinoid system, which is responsible for helping the body maintain internal balance, or homeostasis, which is needed for attaining optimum health. To expand our understanding of cannabinoids and the endocannabinoid system, scientists and botanists are exploring the prevalence of cannabinoids in many plants used in natural remedies, other than just cannabis. Below are six plants found to either contain healing cannabinoids or affect the endocannabinoid system, and some of their known therapeutic benefits.