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Abstract
Understanding the cultural and medical history of cannabis use is an important component to the successful integration of cannabis in modern clinical practices. This review chronicles over six thousand years of documented cannabis use in cultural practices, medical applications, breeding practices to enhance the pharmacological properties, and the various methods by which people have consumed the plant.
Keywords: Cannabis, history of cannabis, medical cannabis, cannabinoid
Introduction
Today there is much discussion and debate over cannabis and its use in healthcare. But what is often left out of the dialogue is the over 6000 years of documented experience people have had with this plant. Historically, cannabis' medical applications appear to have been realized by most cultures; however, it appears that much of our modern day cultural perspectives on cannabis are based neither on historical evidence nor recent discovery. As with many scientific disciplines, much can be learned from our collective history. To help with our modern understanding about cannabis, this review provides the reader with a historical account of this plants' use, a perspective into a millennia of selective breeding and its effects, and insight into the many ways in which cannabis can be administered.
History of cannabis use
The earliest evidence of cannabis cultivation comes from China, in the form of pollen deposits found in the village site of Pan-p'o, dated to 4000 BCE (1). At the time, cannabis was regarded among the 'five grains' and was farmed as a major food crop, also playing a major role in the production of textiles, rope, paper, and oil (2). The first record of its use in medicine comes from the Pen-ts'ao ching, the world's oldest pharmacopoeia (3). Although compiled between 0-100 AD, the Pen-ts'ao has been attributed to Emperor Shen-nung, who ruled during 2700 BCE (3). It recognizes cannabis as being useful for over 100 ailments, including rheumatic pain, gout and malaria (4). The Pen-ts'ao ching also mentions the psychoactive effects of cannabis stating that "ma-fen (fruit of cannabis), if taken over the long term, it makes one communicate with spirits and lightens one's body" (1). Between 117 and 207 AD, Hua T'o, a physician of the time and the founder of Chinese surgery, described cannabis as an analgesic (5). He is reported...