Articles Tagged with: Сannabis de meer en

Cannabis and cancer: How does cannabis affect cancer?

Cannabis and cancer, what is the situation? The fact that cannabis can be used as a medication is nothing new. In fact, people have been using cannabis as medicine for various types of conditions for 5000 years. For example, cannabis is one of the most important medicinal plants in traditional Chinese medicine.

Cannabis can reduce symptoms such as chronic pain, nausea and muscle aches. There are also increasing rumors that cannabis can also be beneficial for people with cancer.

The effects of cancer can be life-threatening. So it is not surprising that people are searching for a remedy. A few years back, the U.S. government even added a page to its official cancer advisory website, discussing the effects of medicinal cannabis and cannabinoids on cancer, based on scientific research. The page states in black and white that cannabis may inhibit the growth of cancer cells.

If so, why isn’t cannabis being distributed en masse to cancer patients? What exactly is the story about cannabis use in cancer? We figured it out for you.

Does cannabis cure people with cancer?

Let’s get right to the point: cannabis does not yet cure cancer. That does not mean that there are no indications that cannabis may help cure cancer in the future. In fact, it has already been seen in laboratories that cannabis can slow the growth of cancer cells. Good news!

The bad news is that a laboratory is not a human being. A lot more research is needed to find out if cannabis has the same effect on cancer cells in humans.

A complex plant

If we have been using cannabis as medicine for 5,000 years and we have now also found out that the plant inhibits the growth of cancer cells, why do these studies take so long? Can’t it be done a little faster? Unfortunately. Cannabis is a very complex plant. Many components have never been studied for their potential medicinal effects. That medicinal effect depends on the composition of active substances present in the sticky resin in glandular hairs of the flower buds. Researchers believe that cannabinoids and terpenes are important substances in this respect.

Cannabinoids and terpenes

Cannabinoids are not found anywhere else in nature. There are currently 100 known cannabinoids, of which THC is one. Terpenes are found everywhere in nature; for example, it is the main component of pine resin. Terpenes cause the effects of cannabinoids to be refined. For example, a particular terpene can cause a particular cannabinoid to be better absorbed into the body. Because there are many different types of terpenes and cannabinoids, a huge number of combinations can be achieved.

Drawbacks of cannabis studied more often than benefits

More than 10,000 scientific articles on the effects of cannabis have already been published. New components of the plant continue to be discovered. In the past, most studies have focused on the health drawbacks of cannabis rather than its benefits. There is some real catching up to do to bring out the truth about the effects of cannabis on cancer.

To use or not to use cannabis when treating cancer

Based on the studies conducted so far, it can be concluded that cannabis could reduce the side effects of treating diseases such as a form of cancer, and conditions such as AIDS and hepatitis C. It could relieve nausea in chemo patients and reduce vomiting. In addition, medicinal cannabis could induce appetite in some and improve the quality of sleep.

A joint is different to medicinal weed

If you know someone undergoing chemotherapy you cannot help them with a joint from the local coffee shop. Such a joint unfortunately does more harm than good. Partly because of the extra added tobacco and the effects of THC. Those who want to use cannabis to alleviate the unpleasant side effects of chemotherapy will need a prescription for pharmacy cannabis oil from their GP. In practice, of course, patients often use cannabis on their own accord. This has the advantage that the user can decide for himself what quantity works best for him. ‘Normally’ the general practitioner determines the dosage. Furthermore, a special inhaler can help inhale cannabis without the addition of tobacco.

More and more people recognize the medicinal benefits of cannabis

Although it is already clear that cannabis can slow the growth of cancer cells in a laboratory setting, much more (clinical) research is needed. More research may enable the cannabis plant to be used as a cure for cancer.

Fortunately, more and more research has been conducted recently on the medicinal power of cannabis and its beneficial effects, rather than the negative effects of the plant. The idea of using cannabis as medicine is gaining traction in the medical community. And that means more and more research can be accomplished. Want to know more? Check out the website of the Scientific Information Center on Cannabis.

Our coffee shop in Amsterdam

Of course, we hope you read this article in good health so we can welcome you to our coffeeshop in Amsterdam. We are easily accessible for those who live in Amsterdam, Amstelveen or Amsterdam Airport Schiphol region. Or if you are visiting the Amsterdam Forest or Schiphol Airport. We are your go-to coffee shop in Amsterdam. See you soon!

Chill out during Christmas with these festive snacks and beverages full of weed

As soon as Mariah Carey blasts out of the speakers and Chris Rea is on his way, you know Christmas is almost here. Is it going to be a somewhat boring family affair with a lot of food and drinks, or are you alone at Christmas? In both cases, it can do no harm to spice up the food, or rather: to space it up. And to help you a little we have selected great cannabis recipes for you to try. Enjoy!

Spacey Christmas cake

A classic. Perfect for the holidays. The delicious spacey Christmas cake. This is how you make it:

Preheat the oven to 160 degrees Celcius. Mix 200 grams of cannabutter, 1 small bag of vanilla sugar, and 200 grams of sugar in a bowl. Now mix 3 eggs one by one. Then slowly add 50 ml of milk and the cake flour as you mix until the dough is smooth. Now grease a cake tin and fill it with your dough. Place the baking pan in the middle of the oven. It takes about an hour and fifteen minutes before your cake is ready. Decorate the cake with powdered sugar for a festive effect.

Weed cocktails

A drink can of course not be missed during the holidays. Fortunately, weed cocktails are very easy to make. Choose your favorite spirits (preferably with a high alcohol percentage such as vodka, gin or whiskey, rather not drinks with only 30% alcohol). Decarboxylate your weed. Take a look at the butter recipe below to see how to do that and mix drinks and weed together. Use approximately 7 g of ground weed on a 750-milliliter bottle. Of course, you can always add a little less weed.

Cupcakes to make you happy

Cupcakes are super easy to make in advance using cupcake packs you can buy at any supermarket. Replace the regular butter with cannabutter and you’re good to go. Naturally, cupcakes are perfect for being beautifully decorated. Be very careful when serving cupcakes if there are children around.

Weed ice cream

Pour 500 ml whipped cream into a saucepan and let it simmer. Melt 50 grams of cannabutter and 75 grams of sugar in another pan. Puree some strawberries and/or bananas with a hand blender and mix all the ingredients together. After a night in the freezer, you have a delicious dessert.

Weed butter recipe (cannabutter)

15 grams of dry weed
250 grams of butter
½ liter (500 ml) of water
1 cheesecloth

Need cannabutter for one of the cannabis recipes above? Here’s how to make it.

First, you have to decarboxylate your weed. This ensures that the THC-A in the weed is converted into the substance THC, the substance that ensures that the weed has the effect we like so much.

Decarboxylate as follows: put your oven on 115 degrees Celcius and slide a baking sheet with aluminum foil with your crumbled weed spread in it. It takes approximately 60 minutes for the decarboxylation to be completed. The weed turns brown from baking, that is normal.

Melt the butter in a pan, let it simmer but do not boil. If the weed is decarboxylated, add it to the butter. Stir well. The longer you can let the mixture simmer without burning, the better. If the weed is well absorbed by the butter (after a few hours) then you grab a cheesecloth and span it over a bowl. Now throw the mixture over the cheesecloth in the bowl. You sieve the mess from the weed butter in no time. Now you can let the butter harden in the fridge. You can keep cannabis butter in the fridge for two weeks. In the freezer even for six months.

Christmas recipes with cannabis

You have to wait a moment, but the effects will be extra intense

Eating weed is different from smoking weed, so you have to be very careful. If you eat weed, you will only feel the effects much later. Moreover, that effect is often much more intense than when you smoke weed. So it is possible that you panic, feel nauseous or completely overwhelmed. If this is the case, take some vitamin C and eat sweet things (without weed). Sit quietly and wait until the effect has subsided. That can take a while because the high of edibles last much longer than when smoking a joint. So make sure that you do not eat too much and wait at least an hour and a half before you start eating more.

We are open during the holidays

Pass by our coffeeshop in Amsterdam when you are out shopping for the holidays. Or to get ingredients for the delicious cannabis recipes we selected for you. We are open every day from 8 AM to 1 AM. Our coffeeshop is located on the border of Amsterdam and Amstelveen. Right next to the Amsterdamse Bos.

From Iceland to Thailand: the use of cannabis worldwide

Cannabis is grown all over the world, both legally and illegally. That makes it difficult to estimate how many people on earth use cannabis. Surely we know that weed is not only smoked in the Netherlands (Hi Bob Marley) but what about the use of cannabis worldwide?

The cannabis news you’ve missed in 2019

Cannabis is in the news almost every day. Politicians, police, investors, researchers, journalists, and even historians just can’t get enough of everything that has to do with cannabis. From health to history and legalization. We thought it would be fun to look back on what the media talked about the past few months. Are you ready to go on a journey back in time? Here we go.

Chinese were smoking weed 2,500 years ago

Chinese were smoking weed 2500 years ago

That’s right! In June this year an important discovery was made in China: the ‘oldest’ proof of cannabis use in the world. In a cemetery on the border between China and Tajikistan cannabis residue was found in so-called ‘smoking pots’. Researchers are suspecting that the weed was smoked during funeral rituals in which rhythmic music and fire also played a role. It was an important discovery in the history of cannabis because up till that point there was no evidence that cannabis was smoked thousands of years ago. Until now, there were only suspicions, because the Greek writer Herodotus wrote about the use of cannabis in Asia in his work.

The discovery also has a sinister edge. In addition to cannabis residue, human bones with cutting marks were found. The scientists involved now think that the funeral rituals were not only about smoking weed but also about making human sacrifices. Whether this is really true has not yet been proven. But at least we now historical evidence for the use of marijuana. Go, China!

Better sex with cannabis, that’s right

Better sex with cannabis

Don’t worry, there was also less sinister news. In early 2019 a study has been published that claims that the use of weed, before or during sex, leads to more desire for your partner and more intense orgasms. No partner? Don’t panic. The effect would apply both to sex with a partner and to masturbation. The study also claims that cannabis improves sexual satisfaction for both men and women. Not bad, ey?

The research was carried out by the American Amanda Moser as part of her master’s studies at the University of East Carolina. More information about her thesis The Influence of Cannabis on Sexual Functioning and Satisfaction can be read here.

Seth Rogen started a cannabis company

Seth rogan starts cannabis company

Sex, China and Seth Rogen, they were all in the news because of cannabis this year. Actor Seth Rogen, known as an actor in movies like Super Bad and The Interview, started a cannabis company with the hilarious name House Plant. With his company, he wants to supply his home country Canada with good quality cannabis. He wants, in his own words, to make it easier for the Canadian user to “score good weed”. In 2018, Canada became the second country in the world where you can legally buy cannabis and as a result, cannabis companies are popping up around the country. It’s no surprise to us that Seth Rogen got involved too.

In the Netherlands, you can buy weed through a so-called coffeeshop. But you probably already knew that. You can find our coffee shop at the Amstelveenseweg 1160 in Amsterdam. We are open every day from 8.00 am to 01.00 am.

The Dutch ‘wietexperiment’, is it going to happen or not?

The Dutch wietexperiment - the cannabis news of 2019

Speaking of legal cannabis, the Dutch ‘wietexperiment’ has also been in the news a lot in recent months. The big question is: is it going to happen or not? And is it a solution or just another bad idea? Everybody has there own opinion. Some say it can work for weed, but certainly not for hasj. In case you were not aware: the aim of the experiment is to investigate whether the legal supply, purchase, and sale of cannabis in the Netherlands are possible. Canada and Uruguay are already doing it, so the Netherlands should also be able to do it too, right?

On the website of our central government, we read that 26 municipalities, including Amsterdam, have shown interest in participating in the Dutch wietexperiment. Will it really happen soon? Let’s wait and see.

So, you’re up to speed again. All that remains for us to say is that we would like to welcome you to our coffeeshop in Amsterdam. You can find us right next to the Amsterdamse Bos (the Amsterdam Forest). Will we see you soon?

Must-see documentaries on cannabis to watch online

Who says you can’t hide in your living room during summer once in a while? We give you permission to sit down on the couch with the curtains closed and enjoy some quality television time. Just grab a juice and relax. We have searched the internet and found two perfect must-see documentaries on cannabis for you to watch or stream online.

Mile Marker: a documentary on cannabis and PTSD (USA)

The American documentary Mile Marker (2018) tells the story of the American veteran Korey Rowe, his former Rakkasan colleagues, and their recovery from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The film explores new and controversial treatments for PTSD, including medicinal cannabis.

In the documentary, Rowe interviews psychologists and PTSD specialists. He shows the bitter reality of veterans in America today. The documentary gives you a glimpse into their world and their bitter fight against drug addiction, crime, and PTSD.

You can watch the documentary Mile Marker for free on YouTube or rent or buy the film on iTunes or Amazon.

Mile Marker is a fairly recent documentary film, as it was released in 2018 and lasts about 1.5 hours.

GrassRoots: The Cannabis Resolution (UK)

An interesting documentary (90 minutes) from England about medicinal cannabis, its users and the fight for legislation. In the documentary GrassRoots: The Cannabis Revolution (2016) several cannabis activists show their faces, including the famous Dutch coffeeshop owner Nol van Schaik.

A key figure in the docu is Clark French, MS patient, and cannabis activist. You get to see his struggle with his debilitating disease and the laws in England. A catchy, inspiring documentary by Dale Beaumont-Brown. You can rent or buy the film on Amazon, but you can also find it for free online. Just give it a good search.

Unfortunately, we heard the sad news that the Dutch Nol van Schaik died unexpectedly. Van Schaik was the driving force behind numerous initiatives to make cannabis legal in the Netherlands. He died at 65 years old.

Come and visit our coffeeshop in Amsterdam

After watching these must-see documentaries on cannabis we would love to hear what your thoughts are. You can visit our coffeeshop in Amsterdam at the Amstelveenseweg 1160. We are open every day from 8 am to 1 am. Click here for directions to our coffeeshop.

Coffeeshop Amsterdam The Border .