Effects of Medicinal Versus Recreational Marijuana Use
Is there a difference in the psychological/healing effects between the use of "recreational" marijuana and medicinal marijuana?
Before researching this question, I could not understand what difference medicinal marijuana would have on cancer patients that was not already known through previous studies on the drug. I thought I fully understood marijuana's effects on the brain until the issues of medicinal marijuana arose. Prior to the research on the subject, I assumed that much of what is known now about the drug is due to the extensive research on its affects on Cancer and AIDS patients. If the use of marijuana is controlled for therapeutic purposes, are the effects different if used regular for non-medicinal purposes? This is the question I attempt to answer through extensive web research.
In the past 5 years, there has been an increased debate about the use of medicinal marijuana in treating cancer and AIDS patients. Marijuana has been used in alternative medical treatment by doctors around the country and by patients themselves who seek relief from the pain caused by cancer and AIDS. Controlled use of marijuana has been used to treat a number of diseases:
"AIDS. Marijuana can reduce the nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite caused by the ailment itself and by various AIDS medications.
Glaucoma. Marijuana can reduce intraocular pressure, thereby alleviating the pain and slowing -- and sometimes stopping -- the progress of the condition.
Cancer. Marijuana can stimulate the appetite and alleviate nausea and vomiting, which are common side effects of chemotherapy treatment.
Multiple Sclerosis. Marijuana can limit the muscle pain and spasticity caused by the disease, as well as relieving tremor and unsteadiness of gait.
Epilepsy. Marijuana can prevent epileptic seizures in some patients.
Chronic Pain. Marijuana can alleviate the chronic, often debilitating pain caused by myriad disorders and injuries." (1)
Institutions nationally have conducted studies on the use of medicinal marijuana on disease stricken patients. The Institute of Medicine published a journal on the use of marijuana and the effects it as a recreational drug and medicinal drug. Because the substance, when used medicinally, is monitored/controlled, the psychological effects on the patient is slightly different, and its effects also vary depending on the type of the disease the patient is suffering from. A complete report done by the National Academy of Sciences details the psychological effects of recreational and medicinal marijuana. In the 20th century, marijuana has been used more for its euphoric effects than as a medicine.
Alice Keck Park Memorial Garden’s predecessor is Albert Herter's El Mirasol Hotel. Even though El Mirasol is purchased and built to honor his father-Christian Augustus Herter.Albert Herter and his wife Adele Herter’s decoration ...
Fredrickson, Barbara L. and Michael F. Losada. "Positive Affect and the Complex Dynamics of Human Flourishing." American Psychologist 60.7 (2005): 678-686. Web. 10 Jan. 2014.
Machiavelli was a Florentine diplomat, statesman, and political philosopher in the early sixteenth century. He authored The Prince, a set of rules for new princes to follow in order to maintain control of their domains, emphasizing the use of power without regard to morality. Machiavelli published The Prince in 1513 and dedicated it to the Medicis with the goal of convincing them to unite Italy and end the Italian Wars, which took place from 1494 to 1559. Machiavelli’s philosophies have been criticized as contradictory to traditional humanist views, but this conclusion fails to consider the ideas set forth in The Prince in the context of other political philosophies and humanism at the time. Machiavelli’s political ethics meet the four characteristics of humanism: Classicism, realism, individualism, and active virtue. These factors combine to depict civic humanism in line with the humanist philosophies of Coluccio Salutati and Leonardo Bruno, two of Machiavelli’s predecessors.
...o treat many conditions; an ancient Chinese emperor prescribed it to cure conditions such as gout and malaria, soon its healing properties were heard around the world and the use of cannabis as a medicine spread like wild fire to many other regions (Earleywine, p. 168). In fact marijuana was legal in the United States till 1942 when against the medical communities recommendation it was removed from the list of acceptable medications. Today there are numerous studies being conducted on the effects of medical marijuana and scientists have proven its effects on treating many symptoms. According to Dale H. Gieringer in his book Medical Marijuana Handbook he states, Marijuana is proven to be effective as an anti-nauseant and an appetite stimulant for people going through chemotherapy and as an analgesic for patients suffering from chronic pain (Gieringer, p. 39).
Marijuana, also known as weed, is smoked for the high, as well as for “nausea, glaucoma, appetite simulations, mucous membrane inflammation, leprosy, fever, dandruff, hemorrhoids, obesity, asthma, urinary tract infections, cough, anorexia associated with weight loss in AIDS patients, pain, and multiple sclerosis” (“Marijuana Overview Information”). Medicines to treat some of the listed ailments have not been found as of, yet so patients are suffering from pain and ongoing symptoms from their disease or illness. The only treatment for some of these ongoing symptoms and pain is medical marijuana. This is why medical marijuana is being pushed to be legalized in America. The “high” that users get from smoking marijuana relieves pain for a short period of time. Dr. Mark Ware tested cannabis (mar...
The drug war continues to be an ongoing issue in the US – and, to some extent, around the world. The contentious policy, since its inception, has been meticulously documented by historians and filmmakers alike. This paper will explore the failure of “War on Drugs” in the US by engaging with textual scholarly secondary sources to which will be supplemented by a relevant documentary, The House We Live In by Jarecki. It is the war on drugs, and not the drugs themselves, that are harming the nation. As this paper will show, the drug war is a failure on several accounts. Drug prohibition, and the later variation, “war on drugs”, attempt to internationally suppress the inherently complex global drug trade through simplistic means only exasperated the situation. Furthermore, at a national level, the “war on drugs” helped with the criminalization of millions of otherwise law-abiding citizens and legitimization of public policies that are insidious in disproportionate consequences to both race, and, ultimately, class; however, it is precisely these factors, as Jarecki argues in his film, that make the drug war successful in other respects.
Marijuana is a plant containing a psychoactive chemical, THC are in its leaves, buds, and flowers. It has been shown that marijuana helps cancer, chemotheraps, AIDS, HIV, glocoma, muscle spasticity, and neurological disorders (www.drugpolicy.org). Medical use of marijuana should be allowed because it is not as addictive as pain medications, it helps with pain and stress, and it helps chronic illnesses.
Packer, Jan, and Julie Ballantyne. "The Impact of Music Festival Attendance on Young people’s Psychological and Social Well-being." Psychology of Music 39.2 (2011): 164-81. Print.
Schroth, Helfer, Kizior, D. W., & Kizior. (2011). "War on drugs" In M. Kleiman, & J. Hawdon (Eds.), Encyclopedia of drug policy: “the war on drugs'' past, present, and future. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
The drug policy “War on Drugs” implemented by the criminal justice system the in United States has failed to address the war with the use of drugs in America. The United States of America has fought for over a century, and four presidents have staged this war that has yet to produce significant results. It is a war that the US was losing and drug abusers were all over hospitals, courts, and prisons. The use of drugs has ended in violent crimes that have always resulted into damaging neighborhoods in this country, and many children have been lost and abandoned due to drug abuse (Friman, 2008).
Marijuana is one of the oldest cultivated plants in the world (7). Since it became illegal in 1967 (5), there have been many questions of whether or not it is good for medical purposes. Debates between people that are for and against the use of marijuana in medicine have been heated and in recent years, referendums have been brought up in several states to make it available for medical treatment. Personally, I think that marijuana has the power to be a significant help with certain aliments, however, I think that more research is needed to prove its' medical potential.
Medically, marijuana has proven to be a productive drug. Studies show marijuana has helped dealing with “pain, muscle spasms, seizure disorders and nausea from cancer chemotherapy.” (Weir) Scientist believes these benefits come from a chemical compound in marijuana called cannabidiol. This chemical is not the active chemical that gives marijuana users the mind-altering effects. With the unce...
Marijuana is a cannabis drug that may be used for medical purposes. It was used to soothe malaria and constipation in many Asian countries including India and China (Ashton). It has the capability to relieve the pain of a serious sickness like malaria as well as a common every day stomach sickness like constipation. Marijuana has also been used therapeutically for the common disease asthma (Ashton). It “exert[s] a bronchodilator action on the small airways” therefore allowing a person to breathe better (Ashton). Marijuana has not only been used for amusement but it has been a treatment for many illnesses therefore; we need to consider all the characteristics of marijuana before making a decision to legalize it for medical purposes.
drugs to this day. One of the reasons the war on drugs is lasting so long is because of the cost; the war on drugs is a very expense war. In the past, the government has spent arou...
Narcotics, guns and violence, the powerful elements of the never ending war. All these elements are part of the campaign to rid the world of the disaster that drugs so ferociously have inflicted upon America. The war, created by The United States’ demand and government circumstances, has been fighting drug lords and opportunists. The United States has for the past three decades declared that it is in a full fledged attack against drugs and the violence it fosters. For decades billions and billons of dollars have been justified through the infamous War on Drugs. The drug problem has not stopped. The money and military activity have not been enough, and the “urban problem,” has not been solved. It is that our governments do not have the strategic smarts to solve the problem? The United States has the largest demand of drugs in the world. While other countries also face the drug problem, The United States has spent the most and its effectiveness is questionable. Today’s “War on Drugs,” is merely the justification to the apprehension of many U.S. interest enemies and has been a loop hole to exploit many developing countries in South and Central America. The commerce that the narcotics create transcends the social, economic, political and cultural aspects. The corruption that the United States is trying to fight will not end as long as the organized corruption and demand in the United States is in existence.