BY THE WAY ABOUT SLEEP AND AGING

Speaking medically, the one side effect of marijuana that is
universally reported by everyone who uses it medicinally for whatever
reason is -- VASTLY IMPROVED QUALITY AND QUANTITY OF SLEEP.

Scientists now believe this happens because anandamide, the natural
anti-inflammatory eicosanoid whose chemical structure closely matches
that of the active ingredients in marijuana, plays a regulatory role
in the deep or delta wave phase of sleep. Rodents who are given a
chemical anandamide-blocker suffer from a vastly reduced quality and
quantity of the delta phase of sleep.

The delta phase of sleep is believed by scientists to be the phase
where your body repairs the micro-damage you caused to your muscles
and joints and ligaments and tendons during your waking hours.

So this phase of sleep is especially crucial for women as we get older.

Exercise will also help you sleep. By the way, this fact is probably
related to the role played by anandamide in sleep. Scientists at
Geogia Tech showed that 45 minutes of running vastly increases the
brain's natural production of anandamide. That's probably why it
helps people sleep.

Exercise also seems to play a preventive role in many illnesses such
as cancer and Alzheimer's. The same list of illnesses, basically,
that scientists claim might be treatable using the active ingredients
in marijuana.

I think ten years from now, it will be recognized by scientists
outside of America that many of the pain and sleep problems that come
with aging are caused by a decline in the body's natural ability to
produce anadamide.

This science might NOT be recongized inside America within the next
ten years, because Americans are too emotionally and politically and
economically entangled in the Drug War to stop and listen to any
objective science, even if it could save their lives.

People are probably getting ready to hurl rocks at my head right now
just for discussing this. Oh well. I suppose that can't be helped.

- -- Patricia Schwarz