Marijuana – Should It Be a Medical Option?

Marijuana – Should it be a medical option?

Marijuana is illegal by federal law. Marijuana is a schedule I drug, meaning the federal government has classified it as not safe and a dangerous drug that has high probability of addiction. Many refer to it as the “gateway drug”, implying using it will lead to other drug use. Marijuana’s main ingredient is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, more commonly known as THC, which is the chemical that gives the “high” in using the drug.

THC is not the only active chemical in marijuana, as we are learning. There is a chemical in the plant called cannabinoids. Cannabinoids have been said to treat chronic illnesses in patients that do not respond to traditional pharmaceuticals. It is this discovery that is making the world look at marijuana with a different light. The cannabinoids are chemicals related to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main mind-altering ingredient. THC is only one of the oils that scientist are interested in, the other is cannabidiol, or CBD. Scientist are conducting preclinical and clinical trials with marijuana and it extract to treat numerous diseases and conditions. The FDA has not recognized or approved the marijuana plant as a medicine. However, the oils that are extracted from the marijuana plant have produced two medicines that the FDA has approved. The two drugs are dronabinol and nabilone, they are both used to treat nausea and boost appetite.

There are some states that have legalized marijuana, even for recreational use and there remains a large number of people who are against that decision and who fight against legalizing any form of the marijuana plant. Although some states have changed the laws in their state making it legal to harvest, buy, and sell marijuana, it still remains illegal by federal law. Strong penalties can be enforced for bringing the drug out of the legal states. This remains an issue for the patient that responds to the cannibas oil treatments who do not live in the legalized states. There are some states that have decriminalized the possession of the cannabus oil under strict guidelines, being it must be prescribed by a registered physician, the patient and caregiver must be registered, and both must carry the proof of registration on their person, and the content must be less than 5% THC.

Among the conditions that have found relief using medical marijuana can treat are cancer, glaucoma, aids, crohn’s disease, hepatitis C, and multiple sclerosis. Marijuana oils, such as CBD are effective in treatment of severe or chronic pain or nausea, seizure disorders (such as epilepsy), arthritis, migraines, and agitation of Alzheimer’s disease. Cultivation of marijuana plant has not been made legal in most states, therefore it is a problem to buy it, since it is against federal laws to possess it. In the next few paragraphs, we will weigh the pros against the cons of medical marijuana becoming legal to possess, transport, and cultivate.

The Citizens Against Legalizing marijuana (CALM) takes the position that Federal laws against the use, cultivation, and transportation of marijuana should be maintained and enforced and should not be relaxed or softened. Marijuana continues to be illegal under the Federal Controlled Substance Act, as a schedule I drug. Schedule I drugs are classified as having a high potential for abuse, and no current accepted medical use in treatment and a lack of accepted safety for use. The FDA have studied for decades and still contends there is no medical benefit provided by use of smoked marijuana and that, in fact, considerable harm can be caused by such use. The group further contends the increased availability of marijuana will be detrimental to youth, and will come at the expense of our youth. It is stated that there is no substantiated evidence of marijuana being any different now than it was when it was declared a scheduled narcotic. Furthermore, the use lacks Federal Drug Administration approval and the various legal drugs make the use of marijuana unnecessary. Opponents say that marijuana use leads to harder drug use, it interferes with fertility, impairs driving ability, and injures the lungs, immune system and brain. They say that medical marijuana is a front for drug legalization and recreational use.

Proponents of medical marijuana argue it can be an effective treatment for the cancer symptoms, aids, multiple sclerosis, and epilepsy, and other conditions. There are many medical reports from major government studies and professional recommendations, and many peer reviewed studies proving the use is safe and does help when other medicines will not.

June 2015 -Mohini Ranganathan, MBBS / Deepak Cyril D'Souza, MBBS, MD , in their editorial titled “Medical Marijuana: Is the cart before the horse?” published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, state, “For most qualifying conditions, approval has relied on low-quality scientific evidence, anecdotal reports, individual testimonials, legislative initiatives and public opinion.