Medical Marijuana - The Pros and Cons
There are many different positive aspects to medical marijuana as well as negative aspects to its medicinal use. If used in an orderly way and for medical necessity only, it is very useful, but if abused, like anything, can be harmful.
PROS
The most positive thing about medical marijuana is the number of illnesses it helps treat:
CANCER: Patients with cancer who go through chemotherapy experience loss of appetite and nausea as well as patients with AIDS/HIV. Smoking marijuana helps these people gain back their appetite, which is very important so your body has the strength to help fight off these ailments. The nausea is also treated.
GLAUCOMA: A person with glaucoma will smoke cannabis to relieve the pressure off his or her eyes, which can be very painful.
CHRONIC PAIN: A patient who doesn't like narcotic based prescription drugs for pain management, which are highly addictive is also going to benefit from medicinal marijuana because it helps tremendously with chronic pain. 40% of people who are prescribed marijuana use it for chronic pain. Arthritis, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, migraines, and muscle spasticity causes a great deal of pain at times and marijuana is used to help regulate it.
CONS
THE GATEWAY DRUG: Smoking marijuana for medicinal use also has adverse effects. Marijuana is known as the gateway drug, which can lead to harder drugs such as heroin, cocaine, and many others.
CARCINOGENS: A marijuana cigarette contains four times the amount of tar a tobacco cigarette has. When smoked you are inhaling carbon monoxide, which is an odorless and tasteless poisonous gas. There were also high traces of hydrogen cyanide and nitrogen oxides directly linked to heart damage. It has been proven to cause mouth, throat, and lung cancer after a very prolonged period of use. Over 400 different chemicals are found in marijuana when smoked, some of the same chemicals found in cigarettes.
INFERTILITY: A report done in 1999 by the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine shows that marijuana smoke lowers the chances of your sperm to fertilize eggs in females.
These are some things to consider when thinking about using marijuana for medicinal needs. In my opinion if used in moderation and regulated with the help of a physician it can be very helpful. Just consider the pros and cons of marijuana before deciding if it is right for you.
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