Public Health Effects Of Medical Marijuana

Also, marijuana can be seen as being addictive in nature. “Approximately 9% of individuals that use marijuana become addicted” (Marijuana Statistics). Marijuana contains many chemicals, such as tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which can cause many positive and negative effects to the human body and brain. A major attribute for medical marijuana is the economic advantages that are produced from the distribution of the drug. Also, the legalization of medical marijuana can portray positive and negative outcomes for law enforcement. Therefore, medical marijuana has many positive effects, such as treatment for diseases, and negative effects, such as immune system suppression. Throughout this research paper, medical marijuana will be thoroughly explained to exemplify the advantages and disadvantages of legalizing the

Legalization of medical marijuana is a disputed issue in the United States. In 1996, California was the first state to pass the Compassionate Use Act allowing for the legal use of medicinal marijuana (Freisthler, Kepple, Sims, & Martin, 2013). Subsequently, this lead to the enactment of similar laws from 25 states allowing those with medical illnesses and chronic pain to use medicinal marijuana. The efficacy of the Compassionate Use Act can be determined via data analysis of pain management and other nontraditional benefits before and after 1996. Each state can be categorized as either fully functional, meaning medical marijuana laws are enacted, non-functional, not yet operational or in process, and cannabidiol specific.

Since 2012, four states in the US have allowed sale of cannabis for recreational use by adults over the age of 21. (Colorado, Alaska, Oregon, and Washington State). Washington State legalized growing of cannabis for personal use and legalized it for gifting to friends. In 2016, more states are considering legalization and within the next 4-5 years, half of the state will at least most likely to have proposed a bill talking about decriminalization or even legalization. In the paper it discusses the probable effects that will come with legalization and also the possible effects, along it also talks about the legalization of cannabis and how it affects the use of alcohol, tobacco and opioids, which can tend to be a lot more dangerous that cannabis. Study Method. This report aimed to briefly describe the regulatory regimes so far implemented; outline their plausible effects on cannabis use and cannabis-related harm; and suggest what research is needed to evaluate the public health impact of these policy changes. It reviewed the drug policy literature to identify: (1) plausible effects of legalizing adult recreational use on cannabis price and availability; (2) factors that may increase or limit these effects; (3) pointers from studies of the effects of legalizing medical cannabis use; and (4) indicators of cannabis use and cannabis-related harm that can be monitored to assess the effects of these policy changes. Study Findings. Legalization of recreational use will

The use of tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana within America throughout the twenty and twenty-first century has been heavily disputed within our own government as well as shaped many of our leaders lives. Even currently, the argument for legalized marijuana is heavily debated and brought to the American public eye through vast media sources. The health risks involved in partaking of tobacco, marijuana, and alcohol can be very consequential, or not at all. Many current political acts, such as Colorado legalizing recreational marijuana, have brought the eligibility of past studies on the health risks of marijuana to the surface as well as the health factors involved with other legal substances. This act followed by many other states has forced the government to reevaluate their stances on the legality of mind altering substances.

The Co-Founder and Strategic Advisor of National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA) Steve Fox et al. wrote a book called, “Marijuana is Safer: So Why Are We Driving People to Drink?” to highlight the positive effects of legalized marijuana it exposes how the only harm caused by illicit drugs is the simplicity of it being illegal. In the foreword of this book is a direct message from Seattle's former chief-of-police Norm Stamper. Norm shared his experience arresting individuals by the non-violent drug and supports that marijuana is safer than alcohol (Fox). Stamper said the only reason he arrested people who possessed marijuana was because he had to enforce the law. As aforementioned, marijuana is medically safer under doctor’s orders when compared to the legal over-the-counter drugs such as alcohol and tobacco. Reports from the National Vitals Statistics System (NVSS) shows that in the United States, tobacco use is liable for the deaths of 480,000 and alcohol claims an average of 88,000 lives per year from 2006 to 2010. Yet, marijuana alone is responsible for zero deaths

It is a very exciting time to be a pothead in America. With legalization spreading across the US many are starting to get involved in the expanding industry that is here to stay. So how will marijuana affect public health? In Oregon the distribution of the tax revenue is going to be funded into schools, mental health services, State Police and Oregon Health Authority. Last year Colorado brought in $60.1 million in taxes. All of the taxed money from sales here will be used as a way of advancing and educating Oregon’s public health. Upon researching fiction and nonfiction many inferences have been drawn as to what Marijuana is going to do in the future. On top of that, insights from a few subjects have been compiled to see what different peoples thoughts on the topic are. What it all comes down to is that even if you don’t use the plant it is still going to have some impact on you. Legalizing marijuana means a regulated market, government reaping taxes and much less drug related violence caused by the injustice of the legal system. The rising tide of legalization could be a boon to public health.

public seeking facts to support claims. However, the same type of fear induced media messages

Background and ThesisThere are 29 States in the United States of America that have legalized marijuana for medical use. Marijuana first became illegal in 1937 when the United stated introduced The Marijuana Act. This Act stated that anyone buying, selling, dealing or giving away marijuana must pay the Internal Revenue a special tax (Industry Updates) To eliminate trafficking of psychoactive drug, congress passed The Controlled Substance Act in 1970. The U.S Governmentfound the marijuana had a high potential for abuse. Because of that they classified it has a Schedule 1 controlled substance, the government did not believe that marijuana had any medicinal purposes. The law held a penalty of 5 years in prison and $250,000 in fines for even the smallest amount of marijuana.. The United States found that Marijuana effects the user’s mental health as well as their lungs. Smoking Marijuana places 30 times more carcinogens than cigarette smoke into your lungs (Bob Barr). Cannabinoid receptors in the brain are affected by the THC, tetrahydrocannabinol, which is the main chemical in Marijuana. Smoking Marijuana only takes about 30 seconds to get in the blood stream and to your brain. Once THC reaches the brain it over activates the Cannabinoid receptors altering the persons mind and body (Kevin Bonsor and Nicholas Gerbis).The U.S. Institute of Medicine (IOM) found cannabis to give relief to people with conditions like

The illegal use of marijuana is causing problems for many users, their families, and also for hospitals and police officers. Emergency room visits from injuries or accidents related to marijuana use have dramatically increased in the United States since 2008. “In 2011, there were nearly 456,000 marijuana-related emergency department visits in the United States, which is a 21% increase since 2009” (Marijuana as Medicine). This is causing more staff members including nurses, doctors, and surgeons to be on call for foolish incidents that could have easily been avoided by not consuming the substance in the first place. Several studies have shown that it is possible that marijuana may even be worse for your health than cigarettes are. After all, cigarettes are not peeling points off of your IQ. “Heavy cannabis use in adolescence causes persistent impairments in neurocognitive performance and IQ, and use is associated with increased rates of anxiety, mood and psychotic thought disorders” (Robinson). Marijuana users are likely to encounter detrimental lung problems at least twenty years earlier than cigarette-smokers would encounter similar problems. Along with lung problems, it can also cause disastrous birth defects in women who consume marijuana while pregnant. Some common birth defects are mental abnormalities as well as the

Medical Marijuana, a highly controversial issue in today’s society, is at the cutting edge of both cultural and medical debate. Regardless of federal restrictions of the use of the illegal drug, about 41% of Americans have tried it at least once in their lives.(Armentano) Furthermore, medical studies have shown that while medical marijuana is both addictive and poses some risks to the immune system, there are also positive results to alternative forms of treatment. Medicinal use of this drug has been shown to reduce psychotic behavior, nausea, pain and other sicknesses.(Jack) States should legalize the use of medical marijuana to help those who suffer from a variety of alignments, many of which cannot be cured by pharmaceutical drugs.

There are a lot of negative material out there on the negative effects of Marijuana use. However, I currently am looking at this in a whole new light now that I have watched by 4 ½ month old grandson have 4 grand mall seizures in less them a months’ time. Talk about the feeling of helplessness when his current “Psychotropic” medication (Keppra) is not working. I have researched and researched and have read about the potential positive effects of Marijuana. Cannabidiol Oil (CBD) produced from the Marijuana plant and is a non-psychotropic medication. When it comes at looking at the side effects of Medical Marijuana the seizure medications, I would take the Medical Marijuana all day long. I have a strong belief that patients should

The use of recreational marijuana was legalized in the state of Colorado in the November 2012 election (Hudak, 2015). As Colorado’s Amendment Sixty-Four was put into place, its ruling and subsequent implementation were in direct conflict with U.S. federal legislation that criminalizes the drug’s possession and use (Hudak, 2015). With more states legalizing the use of medical marijuana and a small percentage of jurisdictions following Colorado’s lead, the debate over whether marijuana should be legal continues. Proponents of the debate advocate that the use of marijuana in small to moderate amounts is not any less harmful than the recreational use of alcohol. Proponents of the drug’s use also advocate that many with chronic diseases and terminal illnesses benefit from the drug’s pain relieving effects. Opponents of legalization state that harmful use of the drug will likely increase and children could become exposed to harmful levels of the drug (Alcoholism Drug Abuse Weekly, 2014).

Bennett, William J., and Robert A. White. "Legal Pot is a Public Health Menace." Wall Street Journal Aug 14 2014, Eastern edition ed. ProQuest. 27 Apr. 2017.

Marijuana legalization would cause very little harm to users. Marijuana is one of the safest drugs a person can use, being safer than both tobacco and alcohol. In the mid 1990’s the World Health Organization commissioned a study on marijuana and found that it was unlikely to cause any major health issues and found when compared to tobacco and alcohol, that it was safer to use then both legal drugs. In 2007 a team of experts did research on marijuana for the British medical journal the Lancet, found that it caused far fewer health and safety risks than alcohol. In the same year the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare had come to the same conclusion. In 2005 the University of Oxford found that even long term use does not cause any lasting physical or mental

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