Marijuana: Gateway Drug To Addiction or Answers
Smoking marijuana has long been thought of as a recreational drug or just an illegal drug in general. Never, until recently, have I ever heard anything good about pot. In fact, during school students are taught to 'just say no' and many graduate from the D.A.R.E. program in elementary school, but now it looks as though the tables have turned. Some researchers say that marijuana might just be what a few of us need. The question is simple but the possibilities and opinions are endless. To see if marijuana is a valuable medication or just a gateway drug will serve the purpose of my exploration, to form a more accurate view on medical uses of marijuana within my generation.I began my research with a dual sided article titled " Should Physicians Support the Medical use of marijuana? Yes/No," written by William Eidelman and Eric Voth, published in the Western Journal of Medicine. The first author, a physician, took the supportive side in stating, "it is hard for me to doubt marijuana's clinical effectiveness" (PG) because of the positive outcomes using the drug by his most sever patients suffering from cancer, multiple sclerosis and epilepsy. The author states that since The Compassion Use Act of 1996 patients have reported that ma
I found the information in this article to be strong evidence for both sides of the issue. The first author made a good point by using the DEA as a reference and his personal experiences as a physician. The second author had some well-researched points but his view did not come off as strong as the first. After this article I am slightly swayed towards supporting pro-marijuana as a medicine. This is the article I had been waiting for, all I wanted was to know that something was being done and that the option of idea of medical marijuana was not going to waste. After reading this article and knowing that this could be a positive option I an anxious to learn in the future how the research turns out and whether marijuana is a safe healthy option. In researching for my last article I found an article from Germany where much research is being done with marijuana and THC. Titled "The medical use of cannabis in Germany" by Franjo Grotenhermen in the Journal of Drug Issues, the author starts by giving an update of what is happening with the issue of medical marijuana in Germany. He states that clinical research is being done at the Medical School of Hannover with patients suffering form Tourette's Syndrome as well as at several centers in the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the UK. In Germany, since 1998 THC has been available on a narcotics prescription and "... a move by the federal legislator to make natural cannabis extract legally available is expected in 2002 or 2003." The author continues on with different case studies and where they are taking place. He says that the availability of medical marijuana is much higher and is continually improving in Germany so the research is still a ways off but at least it is making progress. The author states that discussion of outcomes has not happened but soon sufficient data will be supplied to "patients, physicians, politicians, lawyers and others involved in the debate." Originally I was very confused on how marijuana could possible help someone who is suffering from
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Approximate Word count = 1365
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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