The Telegraph
The Telegraph: "Marijuana without the high 'developed' by Israel"
Zack Klein, head of development at Tikun Olam, the company that developed the plant, which is grown atop the hills of the Galilee, said:
"Sometimes the high is not always what they need. Sometimes it is an unwanted side effect. For some of the people it's not even pleasant," Cannabis has more than 60 constituents called cannabinoids. THC is perhaps the best known of those, less so for its medical benefits and more for its psychoactive properties that give people a "high" feeling.
But cannabis also contains Cannabidiol, or CBD, a substance that some researchers say has anti-inflammatory benefits. Unlike
THC, it hardly binds to the brain's receptors and can therefore work without getting patients stoned.
Tikun Olam began its research on CBD enhanced cannabis in 2009 and about six months ago they came up with Avidekel, a cannabis strain that contains 15.8 per cent CBD and only traces of THC, less than one per cent.
Marijuana is an illegal drug in Israel. Medicinal use of it was first permitted in 1993, according to the health ministry.
Today cannabis is used in Israel to treat 9,000 people suffering from illnesses such as cancer, Parkinson's, multiple sclerosis, Crohn's disease and post traumatic stress disorder, according to Israel's health ministry.
