Comp 2 Pursasive Paper En1420

In the report, “Marijuana and Medicine,“ released by the Institute of Medicine, it is stated “the most encouraging clinical data on the effects of cannabinoids on

The majority of the marijuana advocates' evidence comes from unscientific, non-scrutinized or analysed anecdotal statements from people with a variety of illnesses. It is unknown whether these individuals used marijuana prior to their illness or are using marijuana in combination with other medicines. It is also unknown whether they have had recent medical examinations, are justifying their use of marijuana, experiencing a placebo effect, or experiencing the intoxicating effect of smoking marijuana. The main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana (THC) is already legally available in pharmaceutical capsule form by prescription from medical doctors. This drug, Marinol, is less often prescribed because of the potential adverse effects, and there are more effective new medicines currently available. Marinol differs from the crude plant marijuana because it consists of one pure, well-studied, FDA-approved pharmaceutical in stable known dosages. Marijuana is an unstable mixture of over 400 chemicals including many toxic psychoactive chemicals, which are largely unstudied and appear in uncontrolled strengths.

Just like marijuana has its good things, it can also have its bad ones. For example, the effects of using marijuana as a medical treatment can interfere with balance attention and judgement. It may also increase in heart rate and decrease in blood pressure. For the people that smoke it, there's a risk of damaging their immune system.

Marijuana is composed of approximately over four hundred chemicals. According to the Mayo Clinic "Marijuana contains at least 60 chemicals called cannabinoids. Researchers are evaluating how effective some of these cannabinoids might be in controlling symptoms of certain medical conditions. For example: THC, an abbreviation for delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, THC is the main component responsible for marijuana's mind-altering effect. It also may help treat signs and symptoms such as nausea and vomiting that are associated with a number of medical conditions. Cannabinol and cannabidiol, these compounds have some of the properties of THC, but cause less psychoactive effects — the high. [...]” Medical marijuana can be used to treat a variety of illnesses ranging from anxiety to more life threatening diseases like cancer.

Marijuana has many medical purposes also. The cannabis extract was available as a medicine legally in this country until 1937, and was sold as a nerve tonic-but mankind has been using cannabis medicines much longer than that. Marijuana appears in almost every known book of medicine written by ancient scholars and wise men. It is usually ranked among the top medicines, called 'panaceas', a word which means 'cure-all'. The list of diseases which cannabis can be used for includes: multiple sclerosis, cancer treatment, AIDS (and AIDS treatment), glaucoma, depression, epilepsy, migraine headaches, asthma, pruritis, sclerodoma, severe pain, and dystonia. This list does not even consider the other medicines which can be made out of marijuana-these are just some of the illnesses for which people smoke or eat whole marijuana today. There are over 60 chemicals in marijuana which may have medical uses. It is relatively easy to extract these into food or beverage, or into some sort of lotion, using butter, fat, oil, or alcohol. One chemical, cannabinol, may be useful to help people who cannot sleep.

Marijuana does have side effects. Your body and mind be relaxed to the point that you can be in your own world. It can cause a person to be paranoid and temporary loss of memory. Marijuana can also have hyperphagia, which is excessive hunger. Medical marijuana can make a person lazy. Medical marijuana can help people with insomnia because it can help a person sleep. Marijuana can make a person be alert and in some people, marijuana can help a person function and think things clearer like dealing with psychological problems depending on the person.

According to the authors, recent studies have shown that there is another compound in marijuana that is increasing the attention of both scientists and medical marijuana providers known as cannabidiol, or CBD. CBD is not an intoxicating product, and does not produce a high when alone, but some researchers claim it may calm the anxiety produced by THC. Some research suggests that marijuana with a better balance between CBD and THC is less risky than the high-THC, low-CBD strains that now dominate the upper end of the marijuana market (Caulkin 9). With scientists discovering the new compound CBD, it makes them more interested in doing further research in order to discover more roles of other compounds

Medical marijuana has been known for its instrumental role in the treatment of several ailments both physical and psychological. It has been found to play a role in the treatment of chronic pain, muscle spasm, multiple sclerosis, nausea, vomiting, appetite stimulation, stress, anxiety, depression and insomnia. The effects of marijuana are produced by the active ingredient found in it - delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Because of these findings according to Hoffmann & Weber (2010) experts in the medical field have had to be revisiting the evidence as it relates to the medicinal benefits of marijuana and the American Medical Association (AMA) has been the driving force behind the petition for marijuana as a ‘Scheduled I controlled substance’ so that further research and development can be done on the plant. Further value is added to the advantages of medical marijuana when regardless of its criminalization, the FDA and American Cancer Society agree that the active ingredients in marijuana, orcannabinoids, have been approved by officials to “highlight increased nausea and vomiting and appetite in people with cancer and AIDS”. The American Cancer Society says that "marijuana has anti-bacterial properties, inhibits tumour growth, and enlarges the airways, which they believe can ease the severity of asthma attacks"

Marijuana is a great treatment option. It can be prescribed to patients suffering from a handful of things. Marijuana is also one hundred percent natural and virtually harmless. However, the same cannot be said about non-natural prescription drugs, which can cause more harm than help. Marijuana has a better and always healthier alternative to non-natural prescription drugs.

Big Pharma’s first try with Medical Marijuana is a product called Marinol. The drug is a synthetic Version of THC that many scientists say lack some of the natural compounds in natural Marijuana. Marinol has shown to help many people, but it is only for a select list of conditions, mainly being AIDS and Cancer patients. The Cost of the drug Marinol is about $16,000 for an

Marijuana does not sound as harmful as people have said it, and it’s misleading the public. For example, the U.S federal government data has shown that the average THC in marijuana is less than five percent. Compare to Alcohol and tobacco, Marijuana does not cause strong addiction, cancer, heart problems, birth defect, emphysema, liver damages and ect. A recent 2009 populations case-control study found marijuana smoker that had smoked for over a 20 years period of time has shown a reduced risk of head and neck cancer. Without the effects of marijuana, the consumer is free from all memory issues but only cause short-term memory while under the influence of marijuana. Marijuana can reduce respiratory health hazard or spread of second hand smoking, since it can be consumed in non-smoking way and still have the same effect. Non-smoking hazard ways include using it as a spice for baking, flavor for drinking and etc. According to a 1997 UCLA school of Medicine study, volume 155 of the American Journal of Respiratory of Critical care Medicine, stated that both the continuing or the intermittent marijuana smoker showed any significantly different rates decline in lung function as compared to non-smoker. If marijuana were legalized, it will reduces health care cost by accidental injection of unsafe drug usage and reduce the possibility of overdose.

Studies have shown that marijuana produces as many, if not more carcinogens than cigarettes do and also deposits four times as much tar into the body. Marijuana smoke is full of toxic gases and particles which can irritate the bronchial passages and lungs causing damage to the respiratory system. Regular marijuana smokers are more likely

Medicinal marijuana has numerous benefits and risks. Marijuana for medicinal use is an is-sue at this time as I 'm sure it will be in the years to come. Medicinal marijuana is an issue at this time because it possesses great benefits, however, it also possesses great risks. Some of the benefits include, but are not limited to, nausea treatment, weight gain, pain relief, and relief from anxiety. Some of the risks include, but are not limited to, lung damage, increased heart rate, and increased blood pressure. Cannabinoids come from tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), marijuana’s active ingredi-ent. They bind to cannabinoid receptors, which are distributed throughout the nervous system. THC binding to cannabinoid receptors is exactly what causes all of the side effects, good and bad, of marijuana (Merino 10). The issue of medicinal marijuana has both supporters and opponents. Sup-porters believe that the benefits in which patients receive from medicinal marijuana are much great-er than the possible risks.

Even though marijuana has many ways in which it may help an ill person, it is like other drugs in which it has side effects also. Smoked marijuana has the same affects on the body as tobacco, which is a legal and tolerated substance. Chronic smokers of marijuana are at risk for chronic obstructive lung disease and lung

The use of cannabis toward medicine should not be shocking to anyone, since it has been around for centuries. As a matter of fact, it has been under medicinal aid for an estimated 5,000 years. Western medicine truly grasped marijuana’s medicinal abilities in the 1850’s. Infact, doctors documented over one hundred papers about how marijuana helped numerous disorders, such as nausea, glaucoma, movement disorders, pain relief, depression, and anxiety. It also helps cancer patients and those with HIV or Aids. Currently, many American patients have access to marijuana use so that they can have effective treatments for their illnesses. Medical marijuana use is achievable because