The following information is for educational purposes only.
If you (or a loved one) are experiencing symptoms or have been diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease and are interested in how medical cannabis for Crohn’s disease can help, we recommend reaching out to one UK medical cannabis clinics – you can find them all listed here, with in-depth, real patient reviews.
Key takeaways
- Crohn’s disease affects over 500,000 people in the UK.
- Medical cannabis can reduce inflammation, pain, and appetite loss.
- THC provides stronger pain relief, while CBD reduces inflammation without a high.
- Medical marijuana for Crohn’s is available through private prescriptions, not the NHS.
- CAC-verified medical cannabis clinic reviews are here to help patients find the best treatment options.
What is Crohn’s disease?
Crohn’s disease is an autoimmune condition that causes chronic inflammation. It can hit anywhere throughout the digestive tract, but it most commonly affects the small intestine and colon.
Depending on the location of inflammation, Crohn’s disease is divided into several subtypes, but the most common form is ileocolitis, which affects the last part of the small intestine and the colon.
How common is Crohn’s disease, and what are the major symptoms?
A study commissioned by Crohn’s & Colitis UK in 2022 revealed that 1 in 123 (or just over 500,000) people in the UK live with Crohn’s disease, nearly double the previously estimated numbers. The condition can strike at any age, but it is most commonly diagnosed in people between the ages of 15 and 40.
Some of the more common symptoms caused by the chronic inflammation brought on by Crohn’s disease include abdominal pain, diarrhoea, weight loss, and fatigue. The disease can also lead to complications such as ulcers, strictures (narrowing of the intestinal walls), and fistulas (an unexpected connection between an organ, vessel, or intestine and another organ), and sufferers may find blood in their stool.
How does cannabis treatment for Crohn’s work?
While there is a range of conventional treatment options for Crohn’s disease, the simple fact is that these treatments are not effective for everyone. They may help with some of the symptoms, but for many people with Crohn’s disease, few treatment options provide lasting relief.
And that’s not even mentioning the side effects of some of the conventional pharmaceutical treatment options. In extreme cases, surgery may be necessary to remove damaged sections of the intestine, but again, this is not always a viable option for all patients.
With medical cannabis becoming a legal treatment option here in the UK in November 2018, the number of patients who have been prescribed cannabis-based medicines to help control the symptoms of Crohn’s has been steadily increasing, and it is now one of the most popular alternative treatments for the disease.
Can CBD and THC ease the symptoms of Crohn’s?
Yes, both THC and CBD (the two major cannabinoids produced by Cannabis sativa L. plants) can help with Crohn’s disease symptom management.
By interacting with the endocannabinoid system (the body’s largest neurotransmitter network), CBD and THC can help regulate inflammation levels in the gut, reduce pain and nausea, improve appetite, and even stimulate healing.
The key difference between these two types of cannabinoids is how they interact with the endocannabinoid system. THC binds directly to the CB1 receptors (found mostly in the brain and central nervous system) and offers a stronger analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-emetic effect.
CBD works indirectly by activating CB2 receptors scattered throughout the body. This means that while it doesn’t produce a psychoactive or intoxicating effect, it helps to stimulate a more balanced and harmonious endocannabinoid system and has been shown to reduce inflammation heavily.
So yes, medical cannabis for treating Crohn’s disease can work, but what is the best way to get a prescription for medical marijuana in the UK?
How to access medical cannabis for Crohn’s disease in the UK
Unlike other countries where medical marijuana has been made legal, here in the UK, patients cannot legally grow their plants at home. Cannabis-based medications can only be accessed by patients through a prescription from a specialist doctor listed on the GMC’s Specialist Register.
Another important point is that to consider is that the NHS is unwilling to issue prescriptions for medical cannabis to Crohn’s patients.
Thankfully, with the rise of private medical cannabis clinics, UK patients now have a wide choice of doctors/clinics who are willing to prescribe medical cannabis for Crohn’s disease in the UK.
Why is cannabis hard to access on the NHS?
The NHS is reluctant to prescribe medical cannabis for most conditions due to limited UK trials, lack of research, and restrictive government guidelines. Most medical cannabis treatments are “unlicensed medications” as they haven’t been approved by NICE, and the NHS won’t prescribe unlicensed medicines. This doesn’t mean medical cannabis is unsafe – often, it’s the opposite. Licensing requires hundreds of costly, time-consuming clinical trials.
Cannabis-based medications contain therapeutic compounds like cannabinoids (THC, CBD), which have been heavily studied in trials. These cannabinoids are responsible for the reported therapeutic benefits, and both licensed and unlicensed CBMPs include them.
Which is the best medical cannabis clinic in the UK for Crohn’s disease?
Here at Cannabis Access Clinics, we put the power in the hands of the patients.
This website has been designed to offer UK medical cannabis patients a place to leave in-depth, honest reviews of their experience with all the UK medical cannabis clinics that specialise in treating Crohn’s disease with medical weed.
All the reviews here are verified, so if you are looking for the best medical cannabis clinics in the UK, you’ve come to the right place.
If you’re considering trying medical cannabis for your Crohn’s disease, be sure to check out all the reviews for the top clinics and see which option best suits your needs. Remember to check back in with us and leave your own review – let’s work together to help all UK patients find the best treatment options/clinics possible.
