The term marijuana is the psychoactive substance from the leaves and flower-seed buds of the cannabis plant (Cannabis sativa). Hash is also made from the resin of this plant.
Hemp has been cultivated already 10 thousand. years ago. The plant was mainly used to produce ship sacks, strings and ropes as well as clothes. It was also added to animal feed.
The psychoactive effect of this plant was also known. The properties of hemp made it a popular medicine from the mid-18th century. Hemp tinctures were used for migraines, neurosis, and intestinal ailments. They were available in pharmacies without a prescription.
The late prof. Jerzy Vetulani, a psychopharmacologist, neurobiologist and promoter of research into the medical aspects of the use of marijuana, wrote that in the 19th century it was recognized in America as a golden cure for migraines, insomnia and lack of appetite.
Cannabis contains a lot of chemicals, more than several dozen of which come from the group of cannabinoids responsible for the psychoactive effects of the plant. The main psychoactive ingredient is THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol).