Marijuana has had a long history for being used for medicinal purposes in many cultures. It is known for prevent nausea, vomiting and is effective in helping people with regaining their appetite. It is also used to alleviate a person from chronic pain in their muscles or joints. Canada drifted into regulating medicinal marijuana in 2001 and currently is available to people with a prescription.
To date the two most significant ways of using medicinal marijuana is smoking marijuana cigarettes or ingesting it in pill form. The pill is a desirable method for some as it effectively ingests THC (the active ingredient in Cannabis/Marijuana) without the health risks of smoking Marijuana.
When this drug was regulated there were many conditions put into effect on who could be prescribed this drug. For example this drug was only available to:
- Individuals allowed to apply for medical marijuana are people being treated for symptoms within the context of providing end-of-life care.
- Individuals with severe pain and muscle spasms associated with multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury or disease are eligible to apply for medical marijuana.
- People suffering from severe pain, anorexia, weight loss and nausea from cancer or HIV/AIDS, seizures from epilepsy or severe pain from arthritis.
- Individuals with any other medical conditions must be able to prove that other treatments have not worked and that those treatments failed to relieve their symptoms.
Now come to the issue of how the drug is acquired there are many procedures that need to be followed. For example many users were reluctant to use the street drug, but due to its illegality and unsafe handling government regulated marijuana was preferable. A key difference in its quality is where the drug comes from. When someone legally purchases medical marijuana, they can be assured that the quality of the marijuana is consistent, because it is coming from a company in which the production is standardized and the quality is controlled by Health Canada. Whereas there is not surety of the street drug which can be processed under unknown conditions and is quite illegal in Canada. Also when buying marijuana on the street, there is always a high risk of it being laced with additives and other drugs that lead the user to attain the opposite effects of the drug’s medicinal purposes.
Although the sale of recreational marijuana is illegal, many people use it regardless. This can be a good study to learn from because the recreational users who attain the drug illegally are using it for its psychoactive effects. Whereas people using for medicinal purposes seek a much milder effect where they attempt to modify the symptoms of their acquired disease. This effect cannot be achieved with the recreational use of this drug because recreational users seek to alter their state of consciousness and perception, which generally allows the street drug to be much more powerful.
Although medical marijuana is available for eligible, seriously ill people, it is still an illegal substance and the law forbids its sale on the street. This is an important aspect to keep in mind whilst discussing this issue because many times people allow their perspective be altered for its medicinal purposes due to the fact of its illegality. However, in the case of some terminally ill patients, the short-term benefits may outweigh the long-term effects. Although research is still being conducted in what cases medicinal marijuana is best used the outstanding fact is that the regulated drug has a much milder and more effective impact on the patients.