Not logged in
Dopey ruling on medical marijuana
By Dr. William Campbell Douglass on 08/08/2011
So let's get this straight: Uncle Sam says you can gobble up addictive and dangerous painkillers until you're a crazed, self-medicating, drug-addled junkie -- but smoke a little pot on your doctor's advice, and you'll go directly to jail.
Do not pass "GO," do not collect $500 -- and don't expect the government to give you the right to seek safe relief from conditions such as cancer pain and glaucoma.
In the latest defense of Big Pharma's best-selling pain meds, the Department of Justice ruled that marijuana has no medical value at all, can't be used safely and has a high potential for abuse even when given under a doctor's supervision.
Feds won't budge on pot's medicinal value
What the heck are they smoking in D.C. these days? It must be stronger than pot if it prevents them from seeing the hundreds of thousands of patients who are right now using marijuana safely, effectively -- and under a doctor's supervision.
I don't want to get into the politics of it -- it's a losing battle either way -- so let's just look at the science here: Studies have shown it can bring some very real relief to some very sick patients -- including the cancer and glaucoma patients who swear by it.
Other promising studies have shown that MJ can help fight multiple sclerosis, depression, arthritis and numerous forms of pain. Some veterans say it helps fight post-traumatic stress disorder, and a study on this is about to get under way.
As far as safety goes, don't let the image of a foggy-headed stoner fool you: Pot is neither addictive nor dangerous and comes with no lasting side effects when used in therapeutic doses.
Just about the only strike against it is that it's cheap and it can't be patented -- so it represents a clear and present danger to the drug industry.
And that's why your government is so quick to block it every chance it can get.
Look, I'm no dummy -- I know there's a flipside to this, and you can see it anytime you want by booking a flight to Los Angeles or Denver, where all you need is a vague complaint and a 10-minute meeting with a "pot doc" to get your own medical marijuana prescription.
I won't say it's right -- but I'll say that's the tradeoff of living in a free society, and one I'm willing to make if it means easier access to marijuana for the people who really need it.
Related articles of interest:
Two Marijuana Cancer Studies You Probably Never Heard About
Medical Marijuana Salesman Railroaded by Feds
Can smoking up help ease multiple sclerosis?
Printer-friendly versionAbout the author
William Campbell Douglass I.I., M.D. has been called "the conscience of modern medicine."
You can sign up for his "Daily Dose" at DouglassReport.com.
Email this Article
Comments
Anonymous
I was introduced to Pot when I was 13 years old. Until that time was labled as a kid with problems. I was held beck in the 3rd grade. When I started smoking pot My grades improved. I could concentrate on the task at hand. I used it for this benefit through out High School and College. I use now to help me with my work but I am now taking ADDERALL for ADD. The Adderall has some side effects that I think Pot don't have. Recently they are seeing high enzyme levels in my Liver. I have to wonder if it is from the Adderall. I don't think pot ever caused that. Another think I have seen pot help is Cancer patients who are nausated from chemo. They can actually eat when smoking or eating pot. ADD and Cancer are just a few things I think pot could help with.
Anonymous
Some states have told the feds to go pound sand.
It's a state issue and the feds have no business being involved.
Eganza
couldnt they produce a THC extract in pill form and make it a
presciption so as to alleviate the need to smoke it
Davy777
Anonymous #1:
Bully for you. My nephew started smoking pot when he was ten years old. Got it from a kid at school. Then started being labeled as a kid with problems. At 18 was kicked out of the house by parents. No one knows where he is now.
PDH
Eganza: There is (or was, 10 yrs ago) a prescription medication based on some level of THC extract. The specialty cancer clinic where my son was about to undergo a stem cell transplant prescribed it, when conversation was initiated up by my son. My son's verdict, in his individual case, was a thumbs down. While it sort-of worked, sometimes, he had to wait 30-45+ minutes to tell if it was going to have any effect, and he couldn't control the dose beyond taking one gel-cap or two. He went back to smoking the stuff when at home, because of it's immediate and more broad effect, and the fact that he could take one or as many puffs as were needed for relief of whatever the issue was at the moment. Of course, he couldn't smoke it in the clinic or hospital, so the capsules were better than nothing, but .... Among other things, I think that the isolation of just one "active ingredient" for the pharmaceutical may have eliminated other factors that modulated/ improved the effects. When there's severe pain or nausea, it's helpful to be able to get on top of it, get it under control very early on, before it has a chance to develop into an episode that can last for many hours. The pills just couldn't accomplish that, and were sometimes violently vomited up.
Post new comment