The Case for Medical Marijuana

Marijuana is classified by the US Government as a Schedule I drug. A Schedule I drug is a substance that has a high potential of abuse and no current medical uses in the United States. Other Schedule I drugs include heroin, LSD, and Ecstasy (dea.gov). Unlike LSD, Ecstasy, and other similar hard drugs, cannabis has had medical uses through history. Marijuana should be rescheduled as a Schedule II or III drug which includes less harmful, but still potentially dangerous drugs like morphine and anabolic steroids. Cannabis, when used correctly, has many medical uses. When abused, it has many negative side-effects, but this is true of many drugs that are not considered as 'hard' as marijuana. Despite the societal taboos now regarding it, cannabis can still have medical applications.

Cannabis has been used medically or therapeutically as far back as 5,000 years. China and India employed it medically far earlier than the rest of the world, and by the fifth century A.D., Europe and the Near and Middle East were catching on. Early uses included antiseptics and analgesics, but with the drug's spread through more of Europe and the Middle East and into Africa, other medical uses were being developed. Over the centuries, it appeared in Latin America and the Caribbean and eventually reached the United States. The substance has seen use in antibacterials and veterinary medicine in the early twentieth century and was an ingredient in cough suppressants and asthma medication where it was displayed on the label among other ingredients (antiquecannabisbook.com).

Before the year 500, the use of cannabis as a mind-altering narcotic was almost exclusively confined to India (US National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse). Abused recreational use of cannabis has been responsible for the stigma now attached to this plant previously viewed as a helpful medical substance. In the past century, the use of cannabis has shifted away from something almost purely medicinal to almost exclusively a problem narcotic. The dangers of the drug were made apparent when its use became often and recreational as opposed to being used only for medical issues.

The dangers of cannabis abuse are nearly as numerous as its benefits when employed correctly. A marijuana high includes a feeling of euphoria and a relaxation of inhibitions. But the long term abuse of marijuana can lead to psychological harm and mental disorders including schizophrenia and impaired cognition (Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base). Abuse of marijuana can also lead to physical damage such as suppression of the immune system and cellular damage. The properties of smoked marijuana are similar to the properties of smoked tobacco and can potentially cause respiratory damage similar to that caused by cigarettes. A marijuana cigarette of comparable size can contain several times the tar of a tobacco cigarette and contains a higher concentration of carcinogens (bbc.co.uk). In fact, a recent study in Britain found that smoking three joints a day caused the same damage as smoking twenty tobacco cigarettes in a day.

When used medicinally, cannabis has seen wide-spread use in many fields. In addition to the applications mentioned earlier, it can be used for treating the chronic pain associated with cancer and AIDS. It can be beneficial in preventing nausea in chemotherapy patients or those with severe motion sickness. Marijuana is a proposed method of coping with the symptoms of neurological disorders like sclerosis, spinal cord injuries, Parkinson's, Huntington's, Tourette's and epilepsy. The normal side-effects of appetite stimulation have the potential to aid those suffering from Alzheimer's who occasionally refuse to eat (Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base).

In places where society has yet to frown upon its use, cannabis is still used effectively in medicine. In areas of South Africa, cannabis is used to diminish the pains of childbirth and in India, it is used as an analgesic and antispasmodic and in the treatment of a variety of maladies including rheumatism, chronic diarrhea, and gonorrhea (Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base). Cannabis clearly has medicinal properties. These properties can be utilized in Western medicine if society's views on the substance are shifted slightly.

Morphine is still used in today's medicine, and when it is metabolized by the body, morphine is converted to a substance like heroin. Morphine is a Schedule II drug, while heroin is a Schedule I. Morphine has medical uses and heroin has none in the United States (dea.gov). In most clinical studies and in its use through history, marijuana shows promise as a medicinal substance. Even in spite of its chronic abuse, it should not be in the same category with non-medicinal, highly dangerous drugs like heroin and LSD. Cocaine and methamphetamines are considered Schedule II drugs. An overdose of either can cause death. An overdose of even alcohol can cause death. A marijuana overdose is more likely to cause paranoia, fatigue and possible psychosis, but generally not death.

Possession of prescription drugs is illegal if one does not have a prescription for the substance. The same can be true for marijuana. Instead of cannabis patients facing possible prosecution, they should be subject to the same rules applied to other prescription medications. When used in a controlled and medical manner, marijuana can be helpful. Laws concerning recreation marijuana don't necessarily need to change, though laws concerning medicinal use of marijuana are out of place. It can still be a harmful substance when abused. This fact should not ensure that this drug never sees legal, legitimate medical use. It is beneficial when used properly. It has been for over 5,000 years. The actions of those abusive few over the past several centuries can't change that.

Sources:

Benson, John A. Jr.; Joy, Janet E; and Watson, Stanley J. Jr. Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base. National Academy Press, 1999

"Hot Topics - Cannabis." BBC Site. 16 Nov. 2004

Marihuana, a Signal of Misunderstanding, Report of the US National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Use, 1972

United States. Drug Enforcement Administration. "Drugs of Abuse Publication, Chart."

United States. Drug Enforcement Administration. "Drug Scheduling"

Unknown Author, Antique Cannabis Book.
(Information used from this citation consist solely of pictures of medical supplies)