Opinion: Medical Marijuana Benefits

Mitch Earleywine Argues For The Use Of Medical Marijuana

(CBS)  Mitch Earleywine, Ph.D. is an associate professor of psychology at SUNY Albany who believes marijuana should be legalized for medical purposes.

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Therapeutic use of marijuana has a history spanning over 4,500 years.
The most humane and just approach to helping the sick requires that we continue the availability of medical marijuana. Evidence supporting medical marijuana for appetite loss, glaucoma, nausea, vomiting, spasticity, pain, and weight loss is quite impressive. Evidence for its use for arthritis, dystonia, insomnia, seizures, and Tourette’s syndrome is also very promising.

Opponents of medical marijuana mention that other drugs are available for each of these disorders. Nevertheless, people differ. We have multiple treatments for almost every human problem. Some patients do not respond well to other medications and need medical marijuana to alleviate their symptoms. Many pharmaceutical drugs create aversive side effects that these patients cannot endure. In addition, medical marijuana is often markedly cheaper than these other medications.

Opponents of medical marijuana often point to dronabinol, the synthetic version of one of marijuana’s active ingredients that is available in pill form. The use of only one active ingredient makes dronabinol less effective than medical marijuana. Many ailments respond better to a combination of marijuana’s active ingredients rather than just one. In addition, because dronabinol is a pill, it is difficult for people with nausea and vomiting to swallow. Finally, like any medication that’s swallowed, dronabinol takes a long time to digest and have its effects. Inhaled marijuana vapors can work markedly faster.

Concern over marijuana’s impact on respiratory health is easily remedied. There are no links between marijuana use and lung cancer or emphysema. The associations between smoked marijuana and symptoms like coughing and wheezing can be remedied with the vaporizer. The vaporizer heats the plant so that active ingredients boil off into a fine mist but the plant itself never ignites. The mist contains no tars or noxious gases, making respiratory complications a thing of the past.

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To read Dr. Kleber's opinion piece on medical marijuana click here.

[cherylshuman]

As a legal cannabis patient, cancer survivor and now political activist for the cannabis reform movement. I'm thrilled to see the mainstream media producing stories to educate and enlighten the general public.

Intrigue abounds with the Stiletto Stoners? media phenomenon. Cannabis has captured the attention of the world. It?s my job as the Executive Director for Beverly Hills NORML90210 to rip the door open to the closets of the REAL women behind the Marijuana Reform movement. The time is now to take a stand and make a change but boldly coming ?out of the closet?.

We as a modern society can fiscally improve our budget by moving cannabis from the criminal sector into the lawful sector. This is not a left or right issue?it?s really common sense and Government can do good things.

I am asked all the time about marijuana being a gateway drug and the corruption of our youth. Actually, you know who is opposed to the legalization of marijuana are the drug dealers and it is their margins that will be going down. It?s an incentive for them to prey on our sons and daughters.

The cannabis movement is not just the Stiletto Stoners, not just medical marijuana patients and not just the stereotypical dead head from the 70s. It?s a broad cross section of Americans.

Thank you:)
Cheryl Shuman
Executive Director
Beverly Hills
NORML90210.org

[GreenArtist]

So...I have a friend...(sadly??) who does weed and she has breathing problems. Could this be the outcome of weed or could her ancestors have asthma and or lung (breathing) problems as well? Hopefully someone has an answer!
thanks!

[bluns1122]

About Marijuana being a gate way drug. is partly true. But If the whole country can make this issue to legalize it, or use it for medical use, what ever. That the people who use/buy Marijuana, off from the street, wont have to do that anymore. it will Keep them stay away from stronger drugs off from the streets!! and will probably make crime and drug traffic go down!!

I believe if the country wants less usage of crack cocaine, heroin, meth. ect. Make Marijuana legal or make it legalize for medical use. If we can make the people stop buying Marijuana off from the street's, it could save lives and save families getting destroyed. just all because of someone have a opportunity to buy harder drugs from the streets

. is it that Marijuana wants you and makes you do harder drugs? NO it dose not. that is just human nature being curiosity!!! And the person who chose to do more harmful drugs to there bodies, is there fault. Not the Marijuana.

COME ON NOW!!! let's have what the people want!

[bobbybudmaker]

Herb is the healing of a nation...

Bob Marley

[TXFarmer]

It?s been three months since my mother of 83 died of cancer. I watched my frail mother wither away. When she was first Diagnosed, they told her she could attempt chemo treatments and she may have several years added to her life. She went in and had an IV inserted into her chest, so the doc could inject this poison into her body. This treatment in itself was killing her. Three days on Chemo then four off, the four days off were met with extreme sickness. She was either in bed, or on the toilet, she stopped eating and drinking. She lost 100 pounds the first month of chemo; it was destroying her body so much so; she stated this. "If this is the way I will be everyday for the balance of my life then I just want to go." Do any of you have any idea how heart wrenching it is to hear your mother say she wants to die? Well, she took three treatments then stopped, she could take no more. I asked my mother if she would consider trying MMJ? She told me this; son if it were legal I would be open to trying it. We all know the realization about MMJ, it?s not legal. One month later she was dead>>>:(

Now if a person (at the age my mother was when she passed) was willing to try an illegal drug if it were legal doesn?t tell you something you are deaf, dumb and blind. Back when my mother was a teen MMJ was never even thought about and very little was known about it. So the moral convictions of people were so strong everyone thought it was a poison, when in fact it clearly is not and has great medical uses. Not to mention the commercial uses such as clothing, fuel, rope and much much more.

I am forty five years old and I miss my mother very much. I do for certain that the use of cannabis is very therapeutic for me and many others. I am now facing a new dilemma. My youngest son of 17 may have cancer, still waiting final test results. If he does have cancer, we will move to a MMJ friendly state. I will not watch my son die either in pain or not in pain. I know the positive effects of MMJ, and I am proud to say I smoke each and every day waking day, I have been for over thirty five years and I will do so until the day I die.
If I had one thing to say it is this, WAKE UP AMERICA; even if you don't use MMJ someday you will cross this path and maybe it will be too late for you. Right now in your life don?t be selfish, think about others. Pull your head out of the sand and get involved, get the facts for yourself. Don't listen to the government, all they want to do is control your lives by deception, and scare tactics. Get involved today; on May 2nd 2009 the Global weed march will take place in countries and cities all over the world.
Please Visit http://www.globalmarijuanamarch.org/ and show your support by getting involved in your area.

Thank you
TXFARMER

[iskate248]

They don't even mention that you can put marijuana into food and EAT it! Eating marijuana to get high completely bypasses all the negative effects of smoking the plant. The man mentions that people have been using marijuana for thousands of years-and that is how they used it. They ate it! Smoking is a very culturally popular thing to do today and people often forget that there are more primitive ways to reap the benefits of marijuana.

[ms261998]

I have been a consistent marijuana user for years and found the pros to heavily out weigh the cons. I always have done well in school and stayed motivated. Both my mother and step mother have had cancer and I have seen first hand how marijuana has eased their pain during intense chemo therapy sessions. This drug sould be legalized considering it is natural and nobody would use it more than they do now if it was legalized anyway.

[BrinnaNanda]

In spite of government rhetoric to the contrary, the US Dept of Health and Human resources holds its own patent (#6,630,507) based on the medicinal properties of cannabis. The patent claims that cannabinoids are neuro-protective and anti-inflammatory, and are effective in the prevention and treatment of a wide variety of diseases including stroke, trauma, auto-immune disorders, HIV dementia, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's Disease ? and they are offering the patent for licensing.

Is this hypocrisy? The FDA, issued a statement in 2006 (three years AFTER the patent was awarded to the agency which oversees it) that they did not consider raw marijuana to be medicine. Is the FDA so far in bed with Big Pharma, that they will only let marijuana be sold in pill form by manufactured by big pharmaceutical companies? Actually, yes. Since that is the situation as it stands right now. The big, bad ingredient in marijuana, THC, is being sold in pure form, and it is presently listed in the controlled substances act -- as schedule III, allegedly must less dangerous than the raw form of cannabis, which, at the most has about 20% THC, and usually much less. Raw cannabis is listed as schedule I, the most dangerous substance!

Here is an effective medicine that can be grown on your own window sill. This is a medication which has never caused an overdose. No one has ever died from cannabis use. The main side effect is mild euphoria.

Clearly, the Federal ban has nothing to do with public health, and everything to do with profit. It is time for everyone of us to say to the Federal Government: STOP PROHIBITION! Let there be many, many studies done on cannabis (presently it is almost impossible for researchers to get their hands on cannabis to study, since the government has a monopoly on its production.)

Take the control of cannabis out of the hands of the drug warriors who are only concerned with preserving their own jobs, and with filling our Prisons for Profit with a full load of very profitable, easy to manage inmates incarcerated for non-violent drug offenses.

[Ourfriend722]

Today I attended a meeting of my church's members in reference to Lent. Each of us were asked to give up a personal experience that included some type of angelic being helping us. Some related to a person coming to their help and call them angels. However I was the only one that could testify and had witnessed a real physical manifestation of a none transparent illuminated being as a divine intervention to save my life. As significant as this experience was to me, while I spoke of it to the audience I realized that there were but only two people who were actually paying attention to what I was saying. The rest were easily distracted by a distraction that occur in the opening of a door several times. So what does this have to do with the subject of Marijuana decriminalization? Well directly nothing, but indirectly it has everything to do with it, in that this is the way people act who can not relate to significant experiences or knowledge of such things. God has saved my life several times, which leads me to believe that he has some purpose for me to accomplish. I think that purpose is to be the arbitrator of this issue for the entire world. Within me lies the final decision, that he wants me to tell everyone. The reason He has given one person the answer is that there are just too many pros and cons, which will forever invade in discussions his intended purpose for this planet to exist. Thus his purpose for creating the plant is blocked by the overwhelming deceptive powers against it. He wants Marijuana to be released from the evil that man has put it in. He said that Marijuana is a holy plant unto him, when used under his love. End of message. Are you paying attention or are you being distracted from his message?

[marijuanalobby]

MarijuanaLobby.org tracks potential tax revenue for every State and City in America, the numbers are REALLY compelling.

MarijuanaLobby.org: Change we can engage in...
<a href="http://www.marijuanalobby.org">MarijuanaLobby.org</a>

Yes, We Can America:
A) save what?s left of our forests,
B) ease the suffering of chemotherapy patients, and
C) create desperately needed revenue streams for American communities during their time of greatest need.

MarijuanaLobby.org seeks to enable American Patriots and Policy Makers in their continued efforts to decriminalize responsible Marijuana use in the United States by providing a petition portal specific to the issue of marijuana decriminalization, and by providing additional tools with which to empower citizen activists through education and public discourse.

[eroosevelt08]

If a medical doctor determines that someone suffering from a disease would benefit from a certain drug therapy, then the patient should be able to fill the prescription. I would not want a politician or my insurance company telling my doctor what is okay and what is not okay.

[rsmik]

For 20 years I have been reading about marijuana increasing in potency, but I still can't get a better high than I got 20 years ago.

[tincup356]

How dare anyone trying to use something God gave us for medicine,,,,,,,Big Pharmaceuticals...are the force behind keeping Marijuana prohibition in effect.......Our government is missing a chance to save money and wasted manpower.....by not realizing that instead of spending billions trying to stop marijuana...they could create millions of jobs and BILLIONS in revenues,,,,,,,just by repealing the prohibition of marijuana........this would also free up prison space and court dockets so real criminals like corporate and investment fraud could be pursued............The laws on the books are archaic and need to be repealed...America needs jobs, money , and GREEN INDUSTRY......It's time for some real change,,,change that can make a difference.

[vincan-2009]

I agree with the article and want more people to be able to receive the benefits of medical marijuana. Marijuana grows right here in the U.S. and no drug company needs to get into the mix and make a zillion dollars.

[rcmpvern]

hetup-2009, that's 14-time Gold Medalist.
40 Golds between the Olympics, the World, and the Pan Pacific Championships.

But who's counting?

Medical Marijuana should be legal in every state.
It is superior to Marinol and harder refined drugs in most cases.

It never should have been a "Schedule 1 Drug" - that's just a plain lie.
Marijuana should be legalized, period.

[hetup-2009]

If it's good enough for an 8 Gold medal winner, it ought to be good enough for the rest of us. Pass the bong.

[chocolatefrog87]

I hate how people think that marijuana is a dangerous "gateway" drug! Is it any more dangerous than legal alcohol or cigarettes? Alcohol is SO much more dangerous than pot! The health ramifications of alcohol are so much more severe than those of pot....yet which is legal? Prohibition didn't work...making pot illegal didn't work! People still smoke it anyway!

[gce651]

I see this is the most viewed story in this section but only has 8 comments.

It must be either generating lots of emails with suggestions or just attracting readers who don't comment.

[Haysoos]

Fact: There are alternative drugs for everything that medical marijuana could be used for, but they almost always come with a higher price tag (some nausea cost ~$40 a pill), and always have worse side effects. There are nausea medications that actually list nausea as a side effect.

Fact: It has been studied, there is no correlation between cancer and pot. Now, does that mean that no pot smoker has ever died of cancer? No, thats the reasoning of a 7 year old! Life is not that simple and to try to debunk this FACT by saying you know someone who smoked and died of cancer is like me trying to say that because my alcoholic father never got in an accident while driving drunk, drunk driving is perfectly safe, right? Right?!

Fact: Alcohol is more dangerous than pot and is the gateway drug everyone accuses pot of being. What is most peoples first mind altering substance? Alcohol. its really super accessible, I could get rot gut vodka in high school easier than weed, and thats the experience most people I know have had. The "gateway" drug is simply the first substance that changes your mind in any way. No one will ever do an unbiased study because the pharmecutical companies would never allow it, but I bet that antidepressants and ADHD medicine are this generations gateway drug. Google "pill party" and you will kind that kids fill bowls of random prescription meds that you can easily OD on and pop them without caution or care about mixing the wrong meds, or overdosing. If that doesnt concern you more than pot, a drug that no one has ever overdosed on, than you shouldn't have kids, you will kill them.

Also, whats more dangerous and damaging to society, pot or alcohol? Just go to an Alcoholics Anon. meeting, then a Marijuana Anon. meeting, and listen to the stories that are told. A pot addict says they hit rock bottom when they drank their bong water. An alcoholic says they hit rock bottom when they've beat their kids and spouse, lost their job, house, and/or car, and sold family hierlooms because they couldn't stand the DTs, or might possibly die because their body is so physically addicted. My wifes uncle almost died because he stopped drinking a 6 pack a day and his body couldn't handle it, hospitalized him for over a week. When we the last time someone was hospitalized and almost died because they stopped smoking weed?

[duffyn]

I'm old enough to know two heavy pot smokers who are now dead of cancer. One made it to 67, the other late 50's. There care a lot of carcinogens in pot smoke. The vaporizer sounds like the way to go. Or cook into food. Smoke it? No.