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"Prohibition...goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man's appetite by legislation and makes a crime out of things that are not crimes. A prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded." -- Abraham Lincoln December, 1840


The very word marijuana elicits a variety of responses. For Baby Boomers, it recalls the 60's -- mellow meditations interlaced with protests against the Vietnam War.

For others -- people with AIDS, glaucoma, cancer, and chronic pain -- it's being touted as a wonder drug for relief of pain and suffering.

Is it a wonder drug? Let's look at other options as opposed to the benefits claimed by proponents of medical marijuana:

Standard medications have side effects that marijuana doesn't. With many pain medications, a steady level must be maintained in the bloodstream. There is no "time off" from side effects like constipation, nausea, sleepiness, sleeplessness, "brain-fog," emotional impacts, liver damage -- the list goes on and on. Drug interactions must be monitored. Liver screens are necessary to prevent toxicity.

AIDS patients have as much difficulty ingesting medications for nausea as they do food. The medications simply don't stay down long enough to take effect. Conversely, marijuana can be inhaled, can reduce nausea, and can enhance the appetite.

For patients in pain, from cancer or other diseases or injuries, standard pain medication has many side effects: constipation, nausea, "brain-fog," dulling of the mind, addiction, and the need for more medication over time.

There is also often a limitation in the amount of medication, which results in unnecessary pain between doses. Marijuana has no known level of toxicity and can be taken when and as needed.

Glaucoma can be treated by several different "legal" medications, but again can have undesirable side effects.

According to the New England Journal of Medicine, January 30, 1997, "The advanced stages of many illnesses and their treatments are often accompanied by intractable nausea, vomiting, or pain. Thousands of these patients with cancer, AIDS, and other diseases report they have obtained striking relief from these devastating symptoms by smoking marijuana."

A British study found that Cannabidiol (CBD), the non-psychoactive cannabinoid of marijuana, helped patients with Huntington's Disease, Epilepsy, Tourette's Syndrome, and was found to be more effective than aspirin as an anti-inflammatory agent. CBD was found to be high in hemp fiber plants while THC -- the psychoactive ingredient of marijuana -- was very low. Conversely, CBD was found to be low in drug-type marijuana plants where the THC level is high.

These researchers found that THC is high and CBD low in marijuana grown in hot climates such as India and that marijuana grown in more temperate climates is low in THC and high in CBD.

Interestingly, use of marijuana for medical purposes is not limited to the last few decades or even this century.

From 1840 to 1900, more than 100 articles were published in European and American medical journals on the therapeutic use of the drug then known as Cannabis indica (or Indian hemp). It was recommended as an appetite stimulant, muscle relaxant, analgesic, hypnotic, and anticonvulsant. In 1913, Sir William Osler reported it as the most satisfactory remedy for migraine.

One of marijuana's greatest advantages as a medicine is its remarkable safety. It has little effect on major physiological functions. There is no known case of a lethal overdose.

Marijuana is also far less addictive and far less subject to abuse than many drugs now used as muscle relaxants and pain medications.

The main active substance in cannabis, [delta-9]-tetrahydrocannabinol ([delta-9]-THC), has been available for limited purposes as a Schedule II synthetic drug since 1985. This medicine, Marinol, taken orally in capsule form, is sometimes said to eliminate the need for medical marijuana.

Patients and physicians who have tried both disagree. The dosage and duration of action of marijuana are easier to control, and other cannabinoids in the marijuana plant may modify the action of THC.

So if we do have alternatives to prescription drugs that are not addictive or lethal and can better relieve pain and suffering, why aren't they being prescribed? Primarily because it's illegal!

San Francisco collaborative effort to secure permission to investigate the use of smoked marijuana in the treatment of the HIV Wasting Syndrome.






spinning-buttonSTUDY: SYNTHETIC DRUG MIMICKING MARIJUANA USED TO TREAT PAIN

spinning-buttonADDICTION vs. DEPENDENCEREAD WHAT THE DIFFERENCE IS

spinning-buttonDEADLY MORALS - BY K. FINKELSTEIN - PLAYBOY MAGAZINE 1997

spinning-buttonMEDICAL JUDGEMENT: WHO WILL BE THE JUDGE

spinning-buttonNEEDY MEDS - ASSISTANCE FOR MEDICATIONS




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O.C.P.M. HAS A HYPOTHETICAL QUESTION FOR YOU.
IF YOU KNEW MARIJUANA WOULD HELP EASE YOUR PAIN, EVEN THOUGH IT'S ILLEGAL, WOULD YOU SMOKE IT?



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