Jordan Durand
English 1020 (1:00)
3.18.2014
The Illegal Weapon Against Various Illnesses The hot topic of today’s society as it has been for the past few decades is marijuana also known as weed. Weed has various names as well as various medicinal purposes. On the street, weed is also referred to as pot and grass. In medicinal terms it is referred to as medicinal cannabis. Medicinal cannabis has been legalized in a variety of states. These states include: Alaska (1998), Arizona (2010), California (1996), Colorado (2000), Connecticut (2012), DC (2010), Delaware (2011), Hawaii (2000), Illinois (2013), Maine (1999), Massachusetts (2012), Michigan (2008), Montana (2004), Nevada (2000), New Hampshire (2013), New Jersey (2010), New Mexico (2007), Oregon (1998), Rhode Island (2006), Vermont (2004) and Washington (1998). All the states listed above, including DC, have limits as to how much you can have on you (ProCon.org). Research has found that cannabis could enhance sexual pleasure. As I have mentioned before cannabis has multiple medicinal purposes. Although it is used for many medicinal purposes people still think that it should not be legalized; that it is potentially dangerous to people and that it doesn’t actually provide relief for certain ailments. One of those various medicinal purposes that cannabis can be used for is pain relieving (McCarberg). Cannabis provides both analgesia and anti-inflammatory relief for autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, complex sympathetic dystrophy, and restless leg syndrome (Bearman, David). Millions in the US suffer from chronic pain and a lot of it cannot be relieved sufficiently by existing treatments. Patients are now in need of new pain management approaches. Research is still being done to discover what can be the best way to take in the substance. Because as many know there are various ways to take it in. The most common way is inhaling it. For medicinal purposes though most prefer not to take it through inhalation because of the psychological affects it has on people. In Canada they have created a spray that is supposed to lower the psychological side effects. They have done research on cancer patients who use cannabis to see how well it affects them, if at all, and also on people who have neurological pain. They have been seeing promising results from the users with the spray (McCarberg). Cannabis can also be used to help with mental health problems, such as attention deficit disorder (ADD), depression, and obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) (Bearman, David). It does this by enhancing cannabinoid receptors which are already in our bodies. The cannabinoid within our body is called the endocannabinoid system. This is the body’s natural cannabinoids and cannabinoid receptors. This system even in total absence of marijuana plant material regulates mood, memory, appetite, and pain sensation. It also can influence dopamine levels which is what people who have ADD and ADHD lack. Cannabis can help regulate the amount of dopamine in their brain which in turn can help regulate their lives. The plant based or what it’s actually called phytocannabinoids are there to enhance these processes that are already present within the body. Research is also showing that even if it doesn’t fully help with the ADD and ADHD it still can be used to help with the symptoms of anxiety and depression which most people who do have ADD and ADHD seem to suffer from (Medical Marijuana and ADHD: The Facts). Another mental disease that cannabis is used for is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). To some researchers it is one of the most exciting uses of cannabis. It is very important for servicemen coming back in from the war in Iraq. In one of the legal states California they have a very discrete list of conditions that physicians are allowed to recommend cannabis for. The physicians can also use their discretion to recommend it for any other medical condition where they