The Importance of Medical Marijuana

unmarried Project 3 Erricka Mayfield Colorado Technical University ENGL126-1204A-03 Sound Writing October 29th, 2012 Professor David Mulvihill Introduction The use of aesculapian ganja has been a controversial issue since it has been suggested as a method for use as medication. patronage its dissention, it comes by patient recommendation and Doctors prescribe it to their patients based on its health check benefits.Marijuana has been classified as a Controlled Substance and there wee-wee been statements that it is a gateway drug, in spite of the accusations a dischargest it, patients who use medical marijuana opinions differ greatly. Although documented studies exist weighing the benefits or non-benefits of medical marijuana, it is heartfelt that it should be legalized on the instauration that it helps those who are critically ill to cope with various side effects of the diseases like AIDS, Cancer, and Multiple induration by alleviating pain, vomiting, and unwellness.While ma ny patients are afflicted with side effects from the medications that are used to treat their diseases, the fall in States Government approved marijuana in pill arrive at called marinol which is available as a ethical drug and has been proven to not be as effective due to the synthetic ingredient known as delta-9-THC.Whereas, marijuana derived count only from the plant has the original ingredient of delta-9-THC which works with the bodys natural endorphins by working in direct correlation of the bodys opioids receptor system and creating benefits to the patients who use it be restoring ailing patients to some quality of life, while battling these life altering diseases. Body In 1997, the White business firm Office of National Drug Control Policy asked the play of Medicine to review the scientific designate on the potential health benefits and risks of marijuana as a gateway drug.To the White Houses surprise and to the benefits of those who desperately need medical marijuana, the pioneer of Medicine proclaimed that marijuana usually precedes quite a that follows initiation of other illicit drug use. The Institute of Medicine also states that intimately users of illicit drugs had already used alcohol and nicotine while underage, onward the use of marijuana. In the opinion of the Institute of Medicine they ascertain that because underage smoking and alcohol use typically precede marijuana use, marijuana is not the most common and rarely the first gateway to illicit drug use. In the studies completed by the Institute of Medicine they lay out no conclusive consequence that the drug effects of marijuana are causally linked to the direct abuse of other illicit drugs. The American College of Physicians also urges the review of marijuana as a Schedule I Controlled Substance and its reclassification into a more appropriate schedule, given the scientific evidence concerning marijuanas safety and efficacy in some clinical conditions. In simpler terms the Institute of Medicine found no linkable evidence to marijuana being a gateway drug as most have claimed, stating that most users of illicit drugs began using either alcohol or nicotine even before the legal age limit, therefore stating that they would not consider marijuana as a gateway drug. maybe the Institute of Medicine reaffirms some of the findings, studies, perceptions, and or opinions of others who agree that medical marijuana has some positive benefits.According to medical examination Doctor and Former United States Surgeon General Dr. Joycelyn Elders asserts that the evidence is overwhelming how marijuana can spare certain types of pain, nausea, vomiting, and other symptoms caused by such illnesses as Multiple Sclerosis, Cancer, and AIDS or by the bitter drugs used to treat the diseases. Dr. Elders firmly states that marijuana can safely ameliorate such symptoms in chronically ill patients and that marijuana is less toxic than many of the medications that Physici ans prescribe their patients. The Institute of Medicine contributed information upon a study they completed called The Efficacy of Cannabinoid Drugs which is a study completed on the effects of cannabinoids on a range of symptoms in multiple patients who used medical marijuana. Their findings revealed that the cannabinoids were effective in anxiety reduction, appetite stimulation, nausea reduction, and pain relief. The Institute of Medicine strongly suggested that cannabinoids would be well suited for particular conditions like chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting and in the AIDS wasting syndrome.A study completed at the University of California at San Francisco found that smoked marijuana was more effective at relieving extreme pain in a debilitating condition known as peripheral neuropathy, as well as those patients who have diabetes and multiple sclerosis. To gain a better understanding of how cannabinoids work, they work with specific endo- cannabinoids and are produced by the body and also move with the bodys natural pain receptors. Based upon the opinion of Doctor Gregory T. Carter, who is Co-Director at the University of Washington medical checkup Center Muscular Dystrophy Association says that there are really no other medications that have the same mechanisms of actions as marijuana, although Marinol is available by prescription drug but lacks the advantages by containing only a synthetic ingredient of delta-9-THC, which is only one of many therapeutically beneficial cannabinoids found in the natural marijuana plant. An advocate for the medical use of marijuana named Rudolph J. Gerber cited a number of independent studies that coincide with the therapeutic uses of marijuana in symptoms affiliated with AIDS, cancer, multiple sclerosis, Tourettes syndrome and even anxiety.In Mr. Gerbers citing he found that marijuanas health benefits were greater opposed to those found in Marinol like the onset of relief from the capsule which takes an moment or more, as with the effects of smoking marijuana are only within minutes. Marinol which is oral form of marijuana and contains delt-9-THC which is metabolized through the liver and neutralizes more than 90 percent of the chemical, while smoked marijuana contains the direct ingredient of delta-9-THC providing the ingredient direct delivery to the bloodstream. Lastly, an oral dose of Marinol lasts up to six unpredictable hours, with shifting effects, while smoked marijuana lasts a more manageable and predictable hour or two. resultant Overall the benefits of patient using medical marijuana personally out way the recourse of prescription drugs and all of its side effects. Consider this if you know someone personally who is battling a critically illness and fix prescribed Medications do not suffice, and the patient has to deal with the adverse side effects of the prescribed medications would medical marijuana be an alternative to consider?Would you advocate for the use of medical m arijuana to help translate relief to a loved one from crippling side effects of prescribed medication? If so, I urge you today to consider the medical benefits of medical marijuana. Consider how medical marijuana can alleviate pain, and stop vomiting, and relieve nausea by creating relief to a patient who is battling a life altering disease. Just consider the option of medical marijuana References http//medicalmarijuana. procon. org/view. resource. php? resourceID Retrieved from www. procons. org Gerber, Rudolph J. Beneficial Effects of Marijuana as a Medical Prescription. Legalizing Marijuana Drug Policy Reform and Prohibition Politics. Westport, CT Praeger, 2004. Rpt. in Marijuana. Ed. Joseph Tardiff. Detroit Greenhaven Press, 2008. Contemporary Issues Companion. Gale argue Viewpoints In Context. Web. 29 Oct. 2012. Retrieved from http//ic. galegroup. com. proxy. cecybrary. com/ic/ovic/ViewpointsDetailsPage/Viewpoints Grinspoon, Lester. Medical Marijuana Is an Effective Medicine . Medicine. Ed. Louise Gerdes. Detroit Greenhaven Press, 2008. Opposing Viewpoints. Rpt. from Marijuana