Recently there has been much talk as to whether or not
marijuana has properties that make it useful in treating certain illnesses.
Marijuana has been outlawed since 1972 in the United States on the basis that
it holds no medical use, however it can now be argued that marijuana can indeed
be used in medicine. Since 1972, 20 states have legalized marijuana for
medicinal purposes.
Some say that marijuana should absolutely be utilized as
medicine because it has been known to treat symptoms of diseases such as
cancer, AIDS, multiple sclerosis, glaucoma and epilepsy without the side
effects that many drugs come with. Marijuana appears to be a more natural
alternative to many drugs being used today. Several studies have been referred
to that have found the properties of marijuana to be beneficial to patients of
all sorts of ailments.
However, many people are also against the use of medical
marijuana. One source of concern is the fact that marijuana is not regulated by
the FDA and therefore cannot be confidently declared as safe. Others worry that
legalizing medical marijuana would make it more readily available for
recreational use and this would lead users to get hooked on harder, more
dangerous drugs. Marijuana is also known to impair driving capabilities, damage
the lungs and brain, and interfere with fertility.
It seems as though there are plenty of reason for both the
pro-medical marijuana view and for the anti-medical marijuana view. Like any
drug, there are indeed drawbacks to treating patients with marijuana. What is
important to the debate, however, is determining whether the benefits outweigh
the problems that legalizing medical marijuana poses.
Sources:
http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org
http://longrange.sbcountyplanning.org/programs/medicalmarijuana/medicalmarijuana.php
I believe that marijuana should be legalized in all states, not just the 20 states said in the article. In my opinion, there are more pros than cons, especially in the medical aspects of it, as you have diligently stated. As like most drugs that first come out into the market, they are going to get abused one way or another due to the fact that they are a new thing in town. After a while, once the commotion settles down, its going to reach a state of equilibrium. This is just like the prohibition. Once alcohol became legalized people, started overdoing it but after a while, society came to its senses that drink a lot is bad and drink in moderation is better. Basically everything worked out at the end, same thing with the marijuana issue if it becomes legalized.
ReplyDeleteThis post is especially appealing to me because I just wrote the definition paper on medicinal marijuana. Through my research I have learned a lot about it. In 1972 it was made illegal because of the lack of evidence on its effects and not because it was known to be dangerous. What's interesting to think about is that marijuana is less addictive than cocaine, alcohol, and tobacco. All three of these are considered less dangerous in the US and alcohol and tobacco are even legal to those of age. It has been proven that the THC in marijuana can have very beneficial medical effects to those with certain health concerns. As your blog says, everything has risks and potential side effects. Medicinal marijuana should be legal everywhere and be an available option for those who understand those risks and are willing to accept them.
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