Royal Australian Navy - 👉 Bachelor of Electronic and Communications Engineering
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Sam North is a content writer at Releaf, specialising in medical cannabis, digital health, and patient education within a UK regulatory framework. After a decade immersed in the cultivation side of the cannabis industry, Sam moved into digital in 2020. He worked across the recreational space with seed companies, CBD brands, and cannabis publications, before transitioning into the medical cannabis sector in early 2023 and joining Releaf in April of that year. Today, his work spans both content and SEO, with a focus on how the two support patient understanding and long-term organic growth. He writes and shapes educational content, research breakdowns, and patient-facing web copy, ensuring it is clear, clinically accurate, and aligned with UK compliance requirements. At Releaf, Sam’s focus is on making medical cannabis more understandable and accessible to patients, while maintaining a high standard of accuracy, compliance, and trust.
As of 12 August 2026, Releaf has the highest Trustpilot score, 4.8 from 9,598 reviews. Curaleaf received an overall CQC rating of ‘Good’, Alternaleaf advertises appointments for £29, while Mamedica's £200 Access Scheme is designed to potentially reduce long-term clinic costs. The right clinic for you will depend on what you value most from a clinic, but comparing the full treatment experience, rather than a single headline figure, is essential.
On the 7th July 2026, Releaf became the first medical cannabis clinic in the world to become B Corp certified. Verified by the non-profit B Lab, the certification sets in stone that Releaf is meeting the highest standard of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability, and has made a commitment to continue improving the way we serve not only our patients, but also our team, and the wider community.
We are proud to announce a new partnership between Releaf and brainstrust, the UK charity supporting people affected by a brain tumour. Together, we want to make sure that anyone living with a brain tumour has access to compassionate, expert care through the most trusted medical cannabis clinic in the UK. Here is what the partnership means and how patients currently in treatment can get in touch.
A recent paper clearly highlights the huge gap between how many adults in the UK rely on illicit cannabis to help control the symptoms of their health conditions, compared to the numberlegally prescribed. An estimated 1.77 million UK adults still self-medicate with street-bought cannabis, with only around 100,000 having a legal UK medical cannabis prescription right now, despite medical cannabis being a fully legal treatment option since November 2018.
Early research is showing that THCV may influence blood sugar control and other aspects of metabolism, though the human evidence is still in the preliminary stage. THCV is not currently approved as a weight-loss treatment in the UK.
Each year in June, LGBTQ+ Pride events take place around the world. These events offer an opportunity to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community, honour their contributions, and recognise the ongoing struggle for equality. But June also marks PTSD Awareness Month and, as these two important events coincide, it is important to recognise the increased rates of PTSD among LGBTQ+ individuals, understand the reasons behind this, and improve awareness of available treatment options.
This Carers Week, we are thinking about all the people across the UK who help care for someone in need. Proper treatment that delivers the best clinical outcomes is often about far more than a single option, but rather a range of choices that fit the patient. For an increasing number of patients in the UK, medical cannabis is another tool that helps, and when it does, the people supporting them can feel the difference too. We surveyed 1,669 Releaf patients, and their answers point to a benefit that reaches beyond the patient alone.
The UK (and many other countries) sets its drug-driving THC limit at 2 µg/L of blood, but is that a measure of impairment, or just detection? A 2026 simulator study found frequent cannabis users were no more impaired than non-users 12 to 15 hours after smoking, despite still exceeding that threshold. We decode what the research really shows, and why it is relevant for medical cannabis patients who are worried about getting behind the wheel.
We all know the stereotype: men don't discuss their wellbeing, and often struggle to ask for help. This is even more true when it comes to mental health issues. This Men's Health Week, we are flipping it. Drawing on what 1,118 male patients told us about medical cannabis, plus the first-hand stories of four of them, we look at what happens when men stop putting it off and actually do something about how they feel.
Releaf's 2025 UK Medical Cannabis Patient Survey is the largest survey of active UK medical cannabis patients ever conducted. Of the 1,669 respondents, 24 selected cancer-related as their primary condition category. All 24 reported an improvement in quality of life, 83.3% rated their treatment extremely, very, or moderately effective, 83.3% experienced no side effects, and 95.8% would recommend medical cannabis to others. Here is what these patients told us about managing their symptoms alongside conventional oncology care.
In the first four months of 2026, 114 Releaf patients picked up the phone to the Releaf Protect legal helpline. Across employment disputes, criminal procedure questions, and roadside concerns, the data reveals the everyday reality of being a legal medical cannabis patient in a system still catching up with the law.
The first randomised, placebo-controlled trial of vaporised cannabis for migraine attacks has finally been published. Researchers at UC San Diego compared THC, CBD, a balanced combination, and placebo across 247 treated migraines. The balanced ratio came out clearly ahead, with sustained benefit at 24 and 48 hours and no serious adverse events. We unpack what the trial proves, where it falls short, and how the results sit alongside Releaf's UK patient survey data on medical cannabis for migraine.
96.1% of UK gastroenterological patients surveyed in Releaf’s 2025 medical cannabis survey said their prescribed medical cannabis treatment was effective at managing their symptoms, 97.4% reported improvements in their overall quality of life, and 98.7% said they would recommend medical cannabis treatment to someone with a similar qualifying condition.
Based on UK patient data from 329 respondents within a wider survey of 1,669 participants, 94.4% say medical cannabis is effective for sleep-related conditions, with 82% noticing changes within the first week and 97.9% experiencing improved quality of life. The findings come from the largest ever survey of active UK medical cannabis patients.
The UK remains divided on cannabis in 2026, according to new YouGov data. When compared with insights from the UK’s largest medical cannabis patient survey, a different picture begins to emerge, highlighting the gap between public perception and real patient experience.
A major Danish study followed more than 5,000 men for over four decades to understand how cannabis use affects cognitive decline. The findings challenge common assumptions, showing no evidence of accelerated decline. But what does this actually mean for your brain health over time?
Results from the UK’s largest medical cannabis patient survey highlight strong effectiveness, improved quality of life, and low levels of reported side effects among neurological patients. Based on 494 respondents, the findings offer a detailed, real-world view of how prescribed treatment is working across a range of neurological conditions in the UK.
Recent mainstream media coverage has suggested there is no evidence medical cannabis helps mental health conditions, but that conclusion depends on how the data is interpreted. This article reviews clinical research alongside UK patient outcomes across anxiety, depression, and PTSD to show what the evidence actually says and where conclusions are simply too narrow.
In November 2025, Releaf commissioned the largest UK medical cannabis patient survey ever conducted (1,669 responses). This cohort analysis examines women treated for conditions such as endometriosis, menopause symptoms, severe period pain, and PMDD, covering reported treatment effectiveness, speed of perceived benefit, quality of life changes, daily functioning, side effects, stigma, and confidence using prescribed medication in public and when travelling.
Medical cannabis delivery in the UK follows strict legal safeguards. Most prescriptions arrive within 2 working days, but queries with your consultation or prescription, stock issues, compliance rules, and courier regulations may occasionally cause delays can occasionally extend timelines. Here’s how the process works, why licensed couriers are required, and what happens if a delivery is missed.
In November 2025, Releaf conducted the largest medical cannabis patient survey ever carried out in the UK. This blog focuses on 792 people prescribed medical cannabis for chronic pain, sharing patient-reported data on effectiveness, quality of life, daily functioning, side effects, stigma, and confidence in real-world settings.
Upper back pain can feel tight, sharp, or persistent, often affecting the area between your shoulder blades. This guide explains common causes, what different pain patterns may mean, and the treatment options that can help, including when to seek medical advice and where medical cannabis may fit into a wider pain management plan in 2026.
Blood donation is vital for many areas of health care, including emergency blood transfusions, as well as for medical research and the development of new treatments. This National Blood Donor Month, we’re looking at the importance of blood donation in the UK and around the world, and looking into how your status as a medical cannabis patient could affect your eligibility to give blood.
Missing data is one of the most common reasons medical cannabis studies can look inconsistent. This Decoding Cannabis guide explains what missing data means, why it happens in real-world research, and how it can affect results without anyone doing anything misleading. You’ll also learn a simple checklist to help you spot higher-quality studies, so you can make more sense of cannabis headlines and claims.
"Since starting my treatment plan with Releaf, I’m genuinely shocked at how well it has worked."Chloe Durrington, Releaf patient
