Medical Marijuana's Uses—Don't Toke Up Just Yet
New Federal Law Is No Green Light from Doctors; Smoking's Still Bad
Oct 20, 2009
The October 2009 shift by the Obama administration toward a more liberal legal approach to medical marijuana has raised a host of health questions. Precisely what conditions is medical marijuana good for? How does it compare as a treatment with other drugs? How does one balance the negative health impact of inhaling smoke with the benefits offered by THC and marijuana? Is medical marijuana better for end-of-life compassionate care, chronic conditions, or time-limited situations such as chemotherapy-induced nausea? Is it just what 1960's-era, pot-using, now aging Boomers have been waiting for all these years?
As with many things medical, the answer depends on whom one asks.
Apples and Kangaroos: "Not Prosecuting" Isn't the Same as "Prescribing"
One thing is clear: this decision isn't medical advice. The headline-generating DOJ memorandum about medical marijuana came out of the Justice Department, not the Department of Health and Human Services, and it was issued specifically to 14 states. The DOJ isn't in the business of dispensing medical information. So, this generally welcome news doesn't mean that marijuana is good for every ache, pain or illness, or even that one's doctor is going to be reaching for that prescription pad right away.
Oh, and, yes: medical marijuana use requires a prescription from a physician.
Fourteen Out of 50 States Currently Allow Medical Marijuana
As of this writing, fewer than one in three states in the US allow medical marijuana. People seeking medical marijuana in the other states—say, Florida, New York or Pennsylvania—need either to find an out-of-state doctor, or become an activist and join with their state level organizations to lobby for changes in their state's laws regarding medical marijuana.
The fourteen states to which the newly liberalized federal approach applies (and that, according to the advocacy organization Drug Policy Alliance, have effectively removed “state-level criminal penalties for growing and/or possessing medical marijuana” ) include:
- Alaska
- California
- Colorado
- Hawaii
- Maine
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Montana
- Nevada
- New Mexico
- Oregon
- Rhode Island
- Vermont and
- Washington
Medical Uses of Marijuana: More Research Required
Among the uses for medical marijuana are relief from (but not cures for) cancer, AIDS, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, and chronic pain. The medicine can come in various forms: either smoked or oral marijuana or a pill with active ingredients from the marijuana plant.
The uses and efficacy of medical marijuana have not yet been fully studied. A lot more is known about preventing, say, heart disease—or about the health impact of inhaling smoke—than is known about the therapeutic uses of marijuana.
Smoking Marijuana (Like Tobacco) Has Its Own Health Risks
Smoking pot (actually, smoking anything) increases a person's chances of getting lung disease, cancer, and other serious illnesses.
While media reports announcing the new legislation often show a photo of a person "toking up" or smoking a pot-filled pipe, at least some of the prescribed medical marijuana comes in pill form. Taken as a pill, the "marijuana" is no longer a tobacco-like substance, but a distilled form of the relevant active ingredients in the original marijuana plant.
Clearly, it's healthier to avoid inhaling smoke.
Where to Seek Information about Medical Marijuana Laws and Medical Uses
For more information on the therapeutic uses of medical marijuana, it's best to check with one's own physician, of course, and also hunt on the Web for general information from the leading research organizations specializing in a given disease or condition. Here are some places to start:
- The American Medical Association has some information on the analgesic and adverse effects of medical marijuana. Conducting a web search or consulting the Journal of American Medical Association may also provide some helpful information.
- Search on "medical marijuana" on the site of City of San Diego Medical Marijuana/Cannabis Task Force, the California Medical Association, and National Institute of Cancer.
- The California-based Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research, initially funded by the state of California, conducts studies on the "general medical safety and efficacy of cannabis and cannabis products and examine alternative forms of cannabis administration."
Given this breakthrough in federal prosecution guidelines, it's likely that a lot more states will seek liberalized medical marijuana laws, and that more research will be done, too. There's more information coming down the pike. So, before "toking up for health"— or suggesting that a friend or relative do so — check the list of states above, get a prescription from a physician, and think twice about the negative health consequences of smoking, too.
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