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Nicholaus Powell

Senior Seminar Research Paper

Professors Tracy Puffer and Nancy Kane

6 April 2018

The Pros V.S Cons Of Medical Marijuana

There has been an ongoing discussion of whether medical marijuana is beneficial or not.

This discussion has been a long and vigorous one. People have been in disagreement since before

1970 about this. Yet, recently the topic of marijuana has grown in flame due to the legalization

of marijuana in specific states due to the pros outweighing the cons. There are arguments about

whether or not that there are any health benefits that come with marijuana vs. the public safety

hazards and health problems that come with using marijuana.

Marijuana is a combination of shredded leaves, stems and flower buds.The latin name for

it is “kænəbɪs” which means “canibus” which is another name for marijuana. Marijuana was

first discovered in central Asia by a Chinese Emperor Shen Nung as early as 2727 B.C. The

emperor used it as a pain reliever. It has also been used as a medical treatment for surgical

patients and for patients with malaria. Depending on the quality, quantity, and method you

consume marijuana, it can produce a euphoric feeling or a high by stimulating brain cells to

release dopamine. It can produce mood changes, red eyes, an a increased appetite. Even same

users report a “mellow” like feeling of relaxation. ( Powell)

Marijuana comes in several; different forms for all kinds of patients. Medical Marijuana

has become a large and vast company, it focuses on individual patients, which have developed
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more products of medical marijuana to make it more user friendly based on a specific paincets

needs. There are oils, edibles, lotion, patches, capsules, the actual bud and more.

Marijuana was first prohibited in 1913 by the state California. There are no reports of

cannabis serving as a problem in California before the prohibition on it was started . Yet, the

prohibition on cannabis triggered one of the largest anti-narcotic campaign of its time. Then

shortly after several other states fell in line with California in the years 1915-1937, making a

total of 30 states who outlawed marijuana. Due to this in 1937 it was nationally outlawed.

Congress at the time stated this:

I Wish I could show you what a small marihuana cigaret can do to one of our degenerate

Spanish-speaking residents. That's why our problem is so great; the greatest percentage of our

population is composed of Spanish-speaking persons, most of who are low mentally, because of

social and racial conditions.Did you read of the Drain murder case in Pueblo recently?

Marihuana is believed to have been used by one of the bloody murderers.(Marijuana)

This refers to the crime rate in which the criminals were found to have marijuana in their system.

Then in 1996 California legalized the use of medical marijuana, and just like in the

previous years, twenty nine other states legalized the use of medical marijuana as well as a

couple territories of the United States. California first legalized it due to the undocumented use

that their patients had with pain for cancer patients as well as they discovered medical benefits is

possessed.

As in terms of legislature, the politics tend to weigh the pros vs. the cons of medical

marijuana. For the pros there are several beneficial conditions that medical marijuana can

improve. In just one study patients with MS Spasticity: oral cannabis extract is effective, and
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nabiximols and THC are effective, for reducing patient-centered measures; possible both OCE

and THC are effective for reducing both patient-centered and objective measures at 1 year. For

central pain or painful muscle spasms, THC and nabiximols are probably effective. Oral

cannabis capsules are of unknown efficacy in non–chorea-related symptoms of Huntington's

disease, Tourette syndrome, cervical dystonia, and epilepsy. Marijuana also is used to help treat

pain for cancer patients, to call patients with ADD and ADHD, depression, anxiety, and many

more. Joycelyn Elder a previous surgeon stated, "The evidence is overwhelming that marijuana

can relieve certain types of pain, nausea, vomiting and other symptoms caused by such illnesses

as multiple sclerosis, cancer and AIDS -- or by the harsh drugs sometimes used to treat them.

And it can do so with remarkable safety. Indeed, marijuana is less toxic than many of the drugs

that physicians prescribe every day(Medical Marijuana ProCon.org).

Medical Marijuana users say that once you have established your medical license, the

process of finding what is right for users become very user focused and easy. Your first meeting

with the dispensary staff is going to be at the dispensary that you have chosen. Each dispensary

is different and has their own way of handling patients. The workers ask you the main reason of

why you got your licence and then begin the process of finding the specific strains that would

best suit you and your daily life. With the industry developing you can choose from a wide range

of marijuana products and after awhile you'll know exactly what works for you and how much

you need to use marijuana . Users often say that is helps with pain and also allows them to do

daily tasks that they wouldn’t be able to do without the use of Medical Marijuana. Some users

start off very sceptical about using Medical marijuana because of the false reputation it has of

being a harmful drug ,yet them come to the realization that “The illegality of cannabis is

outrageous, an impediment to full utilization of a drug which helps produce the serenity and
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insight, sensitivity and fellowship so desperately needed in this increasingly mad and dangerous

world.” (Neal)

While the cons for using Marijuana vary, for smoking it provides the same health risks as

smoking cigarettes. The health issues with smoking marijuana consist of breathing problems,

increased heart rate,childhood development while pregnant. Which are it affects brain

development for people under the mature age of 21. When people begin using marijuana as

teenagers, consumption may impair thinking, memory, and learning functions and affect how the

brain builds connections for your synapsis. The public safety issues that it possesses are driving

under the influence, under the influence in public areas, contact high from people using in the

open, an the “impairment” that it can have on people. This was said by the FDA concerning the

use of medical marijuana “Furthermore, there is currently sound evidence that smoked marijuana

is harmful. A past evaluation by several Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)

agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Substance Abuse and Mental

Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and National Institute for Drug Abuse (NIDA),

concluded that no sound scientific studies supported medical use of marijuana for treatment in

the United States, and no animal or human data supported the safety or efficacy of marijuana for

general medical use."(Medical Marijuana ProCon.org) Saying that no matter the benefits it's still a

drug and had no good use in the medical field.

In conclusion it seems that medical marijuana serves to have a greater positive impact,

rather than the negative impact that it can possess.While researching this topic, I discovered it

seems as though that people through history have used medical marijuana, which has far greater

impact than its negative toll. With the new studies and far more accepting society I believe that
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medical marijuana could become legal on a federal level someday and that its medical benefits

could be used to its extraordinary potential.

Bibliography

“Cannabis, Coca, & Poppy: Nature's Addictive Plants.” DEA Museum,

www.deamuseum.org/ccp/cannabis/history.html.

“Medical Marijuana ProCon.org.” Should Marijuana Be a Medical Option?,

medicalmarijuana.procon.org/.
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National Institute on Drug Abuse. “Marijuana.” NIDA,

www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/marijuana.

Neal, Ben. “20 Greatest Cannabis Quotes.” Weed Reader, 25 Aug. 2016,

weedreader.com/20-greatest-cannabis-quotes/.

When and Why Was Marijuana Outlawed?,

www.druglibrary.org/Schaffer/LIBRARY/mj_outlawed.htm. When and Why

Was Marijuana Outlawed?,

www.druglibrary.org/Schaffer/LIBRARY/mj_outlawed.htm.