Hemp – An amazing plant with a shady reputation

OK…You saw the title to this article…and you didn’t get any farther than the word HEMP. Understandable. There’s a lot of bad asssosiations with the word. The biggest is Marijuanna. Ok. It can’t be denied that Hemp, or a similar plant strain, is also used as a drug. I can’t write this and not touch on that fact. Cannabis occupies fourth place in worldwide popularity among the mind-affecting drugs - preceded only by caffeine, nicotine and alcohol. As in the cases of caffeine, nicotine and alcohol, attempt have been made to suppress the trade in cannabis and to eradicate its use. Emir Soudom Sheikhouni of Joneima in Arabia is said to have ordered in 1378 that all cannabis plants in his territory be destroyed and that anyone caught eating cannabis have their teeth pulled out. But 15 years after the Emir's decree the use of cannabis had increased.

Most cultures viewed hemp as a gift, or treasure, from the Divine Sprit, to be used during ceremonials, at which time it was either burned as incense, ingested for deep meditative and heighten awareness, smoked for pleasure, or worn for clothing during these ceremonies. Hemp has been mentioned in many important documents over its recorded history, The Zend-Avesta, a sacred book used by the peoples of India dating back to 600 BC, spoke of hemp’s intoxicating resin. The Chinese emperor and herbalist, Chen-Nung wrote about hemp’s medicinal uses 5000 years ago, his pharmacoepia recorded its effects on malaria, female disorders, and many other illnesses, hemp was referred to as, Ma-fen “hemp fruit”, said; “if taken in excess, will produce hallucinations”. The Anatomy of Melancholy, published in 1621 recommended hemp for depression. The New English Dispensatory, of 1764 suggested applying hemp roots to the skin for inflammation.No successful effort to suppress cannabis has ever existed and in 1969 the UN estimated that there were between 200,000,000 and 250,000,000 cannabis users in the world. However, there is more to Hemp than just the drug facts.

The industrial facts of Hemp may just surprise you. Just as there are tiny house cats and huge African lions in the feline world, corn for cattle and sweet corn for people, and sweet and salty popcorn, there are different kinds of cannabis. Certain varieties produce compounds that act as medicinal or psychoactive substances, whereas others produce mainly fiber, wood and seeds which hardly contain these active substances. It is the non-psychoactive cannabis species that are grown as a source of fiber, wood and seed. After processing, these parts of the cannabis plant are used in a number of industrial products.

Hemp is another word for the plant Cannabis sativa L. Ok, yes - Marijuana comes from this same plant genus – but so do broccoli and cauliflower. Surprised? Also, the strains of hemp used in industrial and consumer products contain only a negligible level of the intoxicating substance delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. Thus, industrial grade hemp is not marijuana.

Hemp was the first plant known to have been domestically cultivated. The oldest relic of human history is hemp fabric dated to 8,000 BC from ancient Mesopotamia, an area in present-day Turkey. It has been grown as long as recorded history for food, fuel, fiber, and for another legitimate use.

In every society where people discovered Cannabis hemp, they often discovered the five uses for hemp which include; hempen fibers, oil from the seeds, the seeds for food, a medicine, and for its narcotic properties. Because hemp is such a hardy plant, it can grow easily and abundantly almost anywhere, and can provide nutrition where other edible crops just won't grow. Hemp can even be cultivated in arid regions with poor soil like Saharan Africa or in places with a very short growing season like Scandinavia. It is one of the oldest crops used for cultivation. It was cultivated in China as early as 4000 BC.

The date on which cannabis was introduced to Europe is unknown; but it must have been very early. An urn containing cannabis leaves and seeds, unearthed near Berlin, is believed to date from 500 BC. Henry VIII required the cultivation of one quarter acre of hemp for every sixty acres of land under tillage, for maritime purposes in England. From at least the 5^th Century BC until the late 19^th Century ship sails and riggings were made from hemp. Hemp is still used on some ships because of its resistance to mildew and weathering and because it remains pliable in extreme conditions where plastic based ropes become brittle and crack.

The British began cultivating hemp in its Canadian colonies in 1606, cultivation began for Virginia in 1611. The Pilgrims introduced cultivation to New England as early as 1632, they learned about the cultivation of hemp from the Native Americans people.

Cloth made from hemp was common in central and southern Europe in the 13 century and remained popular with succeeding generations. Fine Italian linen was made from hemp as well as flax and in many cases the two were mixed in the same material.

A western physician by the name of W.B. O’Shaughnessey published in 1839 of the benefits of cannabis for the treatment of rabies, rheumatism, epilepsy, and tetanus. He also reported that a tincture of hemp and alcohol taken orally was found an effective analgesic.

In Africa hemp was used for dysentery, and fevers. Today some tribes use hemp to treat snake bites, and women smoke it before childbirth. During the seventeenth century peasants believed in the magical power of hemp, and practiced their traditions. On Saint John’s Eve, farmers would pick flowers from their hemp plants and feed them to their livestock to protect the animals from evil and sickness.

Did you know you can eat Hemp? No, no. Not to get a buzz. Focus, people, focus! Hemp seeds are drug-free and extremely nutritious. They can be eaten whole, pressed into edible oil like soybeans, or ground into flour for baking. They are one of the best sources of vegetable protein. They contain a full complement of essential amino acids, essential fatty-acids (EFA'S), and have been shown to lower blood cholesterol and dissolve plaque in coronary arteries.

Hemp is not only good for the inside of your body, but for the outside as well. Hemp seed oil is perfectly suited for hair and skin care. Its nutritional value, combined with its moisturizing and replenishing EFA's, make it one of the best vegetable body care foundations. It gets a little technical here, but stay with me! Hemp seed oil's EFA complement includes polyunsaturated fatty acids, omega-3, omega-6, omega-9, linoleic acid, and gamma linoleic acids (GLA's). Although they are very effective in skin care maintenance, GLA's are rarely found in natural oils. Hemp is an excellent source of GLA's.

Scientists are even working on a way to make Hemp into a ‘green fuel’. Hemp seeds have provided a combustible fuel oil throughout human history. Since gasoline engines are a primary source of carbon monoxide and greenhouse gases, alternative fuels such as ethanol could contribute significantly to the rejuvenation of our atmospheric air quality. Hemp provides a sustainable, renewable, and natural alternative to toxic fossil fuels.

Hemp paper is naturally acid-free. The oldest printed paper in existence is a 100 percent hemp Chinese text dated to 770 AD. Thomas Jefferson drafted both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution on hemp paper. Hemp's cellulose level is almost three times that of wood, so it makes superior paper and yields four times as much pulp per acre as trees. The hemp paper process also utilizes less energy and fewer chemicals than tree paper processing and doesn't create the harmful dioxins, chloroform, or any of the other 2,000 chlorinated organic compounds that have been identified as byproducts of the wood paper process. Hemp is a sustainable, annual crop that is ready for harvest just 120 days after going to seed, compared to trees which take tens or hundreds of years to reach maturity. Plus, harvesting hemp doesn't destroy the natural habitats of thousands of distinct animal and plant species.

Now what do you think when you see the word Hemp? It’s a rather useful plant, right? The world is now in a time where the scramble is on to reverse global warming and making living more ‘green’? What better way to wage that war with a wonderful, durable green plant? Next time you go shopping and see materials offered that are made from Hemp, stop and check it out!