On August 18, 2008 A La Times medical reporter interviewed a group of doctors that were researching the benefits of medical marijuana. Depending on the audience, marijuana is just as dangerous a drug as PCP and heroin and therefore should be kept illegal, or it's a wonder herb that is just bursting with unknown benefits and is being suppressed by the government--or perhaps its a little bit of both: a plant with tremendous benefits as well as drawbacks, yet worth looking into.
While the political arguments continue over medical marijuana, a group of researchers continues to investigate the effects of inhaled marijuana to treat muscle spasms, nausea, and pain.
Researchers point out that all drugs come attached with risks--especially the ones located in common household medicine cabinets, like aspirin, pain relievers, and antihistamines such as Benadryl. The thing doctors try to do when it comes to drugs is to balance out the risks against the positives the medicine can do-- so, why not apply the same rules to marijuana, some ask.
Researchers say that their findings show that marijuana does have medical benefits-- for chronic pain syndromes, cancer pains, AIDS wasting syndrome, nausea associated with chemo therapy, and multiple sclerosis. The research is hindered so progress is slow as they try to harness and understand all of the plants benefits. Another discovery has been that although there are real risks attached to marijuana, they are generally small.
Dr. Donald Abrams, chief of hematology and oncology at San Francisco General Hospital and professor of clinical medicine at UC San Francisco, says he sees cancer patients in pain, not eating or sleeping well, experiencing nausea and vomiting from treatment, and being depressed about their situation.
Dr. Abrams also is happy that he lives in California where medical marijuana is permitted by state law--this even with federal authorities who continue to raid cannabis dispensaries in California as well as scrutinize Doctors who choose to prescribe marijuana to their patients as a form of therapy.
"I can talk to patients about medicinal cannabis [and] I'm often recommending it to them for these indications," Abrams says.
The use of marijuana for medical purposes has a history that goes back thousands of years. The plant was used all throughout Asia, the Middle East, and Africa for ailments like earaches, child birth, stress relief, and pain relief.
In the past 10 years there have been studies to test the effects of marijuana on people with HIV, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and spinal chord injuries. - 14915
While the political arguments continue over medical marijuana, a group of researchers continues to investigate the effects of inhaled marijuana to treat muscle spasms, nausea, and pain.
Researchers point out that all drugs come attached with risks--especially the ones located in common household medicine cabinets, like aspirin, pain relievers, and antihistamines such as Benadryl. The thing doctors try to do when it comes to drugs is to balance out the risks against the positives the medicine can do-- so, why not apply the same rules to marijuana, some ask.
Researchers say that their findings show that marijuana does have medical benefits-- for chronic pain syndromes, cancer pains, AIDS wasting syndrome, nausea associated with chemo therapy, and multiple sclerosis. The research is hindered so progress is slow as they try to harness and understand all of the plants benefits. Another discovery has been that although there are real risks attached to marijuana, they are generally small.
Dr. Donald Abrams, chief of hematology and oncology at San Francisco General Hospital and professor of clinical medicine at UC San Francisco, says he sees cancer patients in pain, not eating or sleeping well, experiencing nausea and vomiting from treatment, and being depressed about their situation.
Dr. Abrams also is happy that he lives in California where medical marijuana is permitted by state law--this even with federal authorities who continue to raid cannabis dispensaries in California as well as scrutinize Doctors who choose to prescribe marijuana to their patients as a form of therapy.
"I can talk to patients about medicinal cannabis [and] I'm often recommending it to them for these indications," Abrams says.
The use of marijuana for medical purposes has a history that goes back thousands of years. The plant was used all throughout Asia, the Middle East, and Africa for ailments like earaches, child birth, stress relief, and pain relief.
In the past 10 years there have been studies to test the effects of marijuana on people with HIV, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and spinal chord injuries. - 14915
About the Author:
For the past 35 years, Dr. Myriam Rosshauckler has researched the medicinal effects that marijuana seeds have been used in history. She has a web site full of information on the marijuana seed and the many uses it has had throughout humancivilization.
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