Guest Post: Medical Marijuana

The Benefits of Medical Marijuana

Guest Blogger:

Syrrant Henry

As marijuana becomes a more broadly accept part of our lifestyles, the question of how using it can affect our health becomes more relevant. It’s a question that doctors and scientists are still exploring. The most powerful and successful argument that marijuana advocates have made so far is that it can be considered a medicinal drug as well as a recreational one. A combination of scientific and anecdotal evidence indicate that marijuana has an ameliorative effect on a wide range of ailments.

Marijuana is one of the most beneficial and therapeutically active substances known to man. Medical Cannabis refers to the use of the drug cannabis as a physician-recommended herbal therapy, most notably as an antiemetic. Cannabis has been used for medicinal purposes for approximately 4,000 years. Writings from ancient India confirm that its psychoactive properties were recognized, and doctors used it for a variety of illnesses and ailments. These included a whole host of gastrointestinal disorders, insomnia, headaches and as a pain reliever frequently used in childbirth.

In the 1970s, a synthetic version of THC, the primary active ingredient in cannabis, was synthesized to make the drug Marinol, which is available through prescription. It comes in the form of a pill and is also being studied by researchers for suitability via other delivery methods, such as an inhaler or patch. Marinol offers a wide variety of therapeutic applications just to list a few:

• ·       Hypertension, insomnia
• ·       Relief of muscle spasms
• ·       Relief of chronic pain
• ·       Reduction in interlobular pressure inside the eye
• ·       Suppression of nausea
• ·       Weight loss—increase and restore metabolism
• ·       Constipation and alcohol hangovers

Other uses include:

• ·       AIDS—Marijuana can reduce the nausea, loss of appetite, vomiting from the condition itself and the medications as well.
• ·       Glaucoma—Marijuana relieves the internal eye pressure of glaucoma, and therefore relieving the pain and slowing or even stopping the condition.
• ·       Cancer—Many side effects of the medication to stop cancer can be relieved with Marijuana. Some studies suggest that marijuana tends to slow down the progress of some types of cancer.
• ·       Multiple Sclerosis—Muscle pain, spasticity, tremors and unsteadiness are some of the effects caused by the disease that can be relieved by Marijuana.
• ·       Epilepsy—In some patients, epileptic seizures can be prevented with marijuana use.
• ·       Chronic pain—Marijuana helps to alleviate the pain caused from many types of injuries and disorders.
• ·       Anxiety, depression or obsession—Even though mild anxiety is a common side effect in some users, cannabis can elevate your mood and expand the mind and be beneficial for mental health issues such as port traumatic stress disorder, clinical depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, and bipolar disorder.
• ·       Physical addictions—There have been testimonies from opiate users that report an easing of addiction cravings. Some cannabinoids in cannabis are believed to have similar effects as ibogaine, a medication used to treat heroin addiction.

The cannabinoids (chemicals unique to marijuana) mimic the healing effects of naturally occurring chemicals in the brain called Anandimide. However, this naturally occurring cannabinoid also produces the negative effects that one would experience from high concentrations of cannabinoids in marijuana.

Medical marijuana can also benefit you psychologically and spiritually. The herb tends to reveal you true self. It uncovers inner confusion and reals your true direction—if you let it. Marijuana offers an effect that is both energizing and relaxing at the same time. This balanced effect will help some to think more clearly and more efficiently afterwards.

California became the first state to allow the medical use of marijuana in 1996. Many states require a doctor’s approval and all but Washington state require an ID card to be shown at the dispensary or enrollment in a patient registry. Many of the states that allow medical marijuana have an online application process. In most states, patients need to fill out the application, pay a fee and provide identification information. To successfully receive an ID card in most states, patients need a signed statement from a doctor diagnosing the condition and a document stating that medical marijuana is the treatment recommended for the patients’ particular condition and situation. Most of the laws allow dispensaries and outline specific conditions for which medical marijuana can be prescribed. These restrictions always vary by state as to the format and amount of medical cannabis that can be obtained at each visit for personal use.