Medical Marijuana Should Not Be Legal
Jennifer Laird
English 1101
Medical Marijuana
In “Medical Marijuana Should Be Legal”, by Daniel J. Pfeifer, the author states what he thinks justifies medical marijuana being legal. I disagree with that completely, because medical marijuana has no proven medicinal values to make it a legal form of medication.
The article states that, “marijuana use, especially by terminally ill patients, mitigates their suffering from unnecessary chronic and unbearable pain that persists until death.” Marijuana may help with the pain for a short period of time while under the influence of marijuana, but there is no medicinal value. Kleber, MD, Director of the Division on Substance Abuse at Columbia University and a former director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy says that “smoked marijuana is seen as being able to relieve nausea associated with cancer chemotherapy, but the drug ondansetron is also superb for nausea and vomiting” (Alcoholism). Food and Drug Administration stands behind that saying “marijuana has no medicinal value” (Mayo).
The article states that marijuana has been used as a medicine for over five thousand years. It was used in India in the tenth Century to treat diarrhea, diabetes, tuberculosis, asthma, elephantiasis, anemia and rabies. In 1850 the United States listed marijuana it in the Pharmacopoeia, a book describing drugs, chemicals, and medicinal preparations, as a treatment for insanity. One may find that interesting as now evidence is showing that users are experiencing the “induction or aggravation of psychosis” (Mayo.)
There was a study conducted in 1997 by the National Institutes of Health, and “five areas in which medical marijuana may provide therapeutic value were identified, though further research is still required.” This article was published in 2013, which is 16 years after this study was conducted, and no further research by the NIC of medical marijuana has been released. This shows number one, how hard it is to do research
English 1101
Medical Marijuana
In “Medical Marijuana Should Be Legal”, by Daniel J. Pfeifer, the author states what he thinks justifies medical marijuana being legal. I disagree with that completely, because medical marijuana has no proven medicinal values to make it a legal form of medication.
The article states that, “marijuana use, especially by terminally ill patients, mitigates their suffering from unnecessary chronic and unbearable pain that persists until death.” Marijuana may help with the pain for a short period of time while under the influence of marijuana, but there is no medicinal value. Kleber, MD, Director of the Division on Substance Abuse at Columbia University and a former director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy says that “smoked marijuana is seen as being able to relieve nausea associated with cancer chemotherapy, but the drug ondansetron is also superb for nausea and vomiting” (Alcoholism). Food and Drug Administration stands behind that saying “marijuana has no medicinal value” (Mayo).
The article states that marijuana has been used as a medicine for over five thousand years. It was used in India in the tenth Century to treat diarrhea, diabetes, tuberculosis, asthma, elephantiasis, anemia and rabies. In 1850 the United States listed marijuana it in the Pharmacopoeia, a book describing drugs, chemicals, and medicinal preparations, as a treatment for insanity. One may find that interesting as now evidence is showing that users are experiencing the “induction or aggravation of psychosis” (Mayo.)
There was a study conducted in 1997 by the National Institutes of Health, and “five areas in which medical marijuana may provide therapeutic value were identified, though further research is still required.” This article was published in 2013, which is 16 years after this study was conducted, and no further research by the NIC of medical marijuana has been released. This shows number one, how hard it is to do research