What is medical cannabis?
Medical cannabis was made legal in the UK on 1 November 2018. This change in legislation allows medical doctors who are registered on the General Medical Council's (GMC) Specialist Register to prescribe cannabis-based treatment options for medicinal use.
The legally prescribable options include dried cannabis flower, cannabis oil, capsules, edibles, and topical creams and balms.
Who can prescribe medical cannabis in the UK?
We mentioned above that only doctors on the GMC's Specialist Register can prescribe medical cannabis in the UK.
But there are also two routes for patients to consider - the NHS or through a private medical cannabis clinic (like Releaf).
The NHS is only willing to offer prescriptions for three specific health issues - rare treatment-resistant epilepsy, muscle spasticity in patients with MS, and nausea/vomiting caused by chemotherapy - and even then, prescriptions through the National Health Service have been exceedingly rare.
Specialists working with private clinics can offer prescriptions for a broader range of conditions as long as they believe it is in their patient's best interest and the patient has tried at least two conventional treatment approaches that have not worked for them.
Is there an age limit for medical cannabis in the UK?
In short, no. There is no specific age limit for medical cannabis in the UK. In fact, it was cases involving young children with rare forms of epilepsy that really sparked the push to legalise medical cannabis in the country.
With that said, at the time of writing, no private medical cannabis clinics in the UK will currently offer prescriptions for persons under the age of 18. If you, or a loved one, are under 18, and you believe medical cannabis could be beneficial, speak to your GP about your options.
Is medical cannabis available to children?
Yes, but only through the NHS and only if they are suffering from rare treatment-resistant epilepsy. The NHS has only prescribed medical cannabis to a handful of children since it was made legal in 2018, due to not just
How can Releaf help?
While Releaf doesn't currently offer prescriptions to children, we are always happy to provide as much information as possible.
You can check out the rest of this new patient blog series or our educational section, which covers everything medical cannabis related, all evidence-based, fully researched and cited. You can also reach out at any time if you need any extra information.
