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The Marginalization of Medical Marijuana

I started doing recommendations for the medical use of cannabis in the spring of 2000. I have noticed a real thawing on the attitude of physicians. I have at least 80 physicians in Southern Santa Barbara county refer one of more of their patients to me to evaluate them for recommendations for the medical use of cannabis under the terms of proposition 215. I have also found that physicians have become more and more curious about how this stuff works. Americans for Safe Access, about two years ago, asked me to speak to Kaiser Hospital in San Jose because somebody contacted them and would like to have a doctor come in and talk to us about this (medical cannabis). And the physicians listened to that with at least some respect and some with great interest. There were some people that didn’t agree. I think part of that is the way we marginalize herbal medicine as I discussed earlier. We have looked at manufactured medicines as being easier to characterize and easier to understand. But what we tend to forget as physicians I think, is that we have evolved with the plants and that manufactured pharmaceuticals contain structures that aren’t found in nature and are more difficult for the body to metabolize than structures that are found in nature.

Medical Marijuana 411 Interviews Dr. David Bearman of the AACM

MedicalMarijuana411.com sits down with David Bearman, M.D. Dr. Bearman helped found the countrys third free clinic in Seattle, Washington in 1967, directed the Haight Ashbury Drug Treatment Program, and founded the Isla Vista Medical Clinic in 1970. He has worked at all levels of government, including being a Medical Officer in the U.S. Public Health Service, Director of Health Services at San Diego State University and Director and Medical Officer of the Sutter County Health Department.

Bill Britt - Polio

VIDEO (Part 1 of 3): Medical Marijuana 411 (https://medicalmarijuana411.com) interview with Bill Britt, polio survivor and medical marijuana patient advocate.

Arthrogryposis

Even though I have a physical disability, hes in a lot of real pain and it helps him, the only thing that helps him. Hes on a lot of pills too and they don’t work compared to the medical marijuana, it helps him out big time. I think its very important for everyone to get a recommendation for people who need medical marijuana. Not only to cover themselves for the law side of it, so that you know that you’re doing what your doctor has told you what you can do. But also, if you’re ill its a great place to come and get what you need. Your medicine that you need. I just feel its important for you to have your recommendation so that you can, like me I take may medicine with me wherever I go. As long Im not on the street driving a car. If I’m going to my relatives house, I bring my medicine with me. And I don’t want to get pulled over and have the police give a problem over that. So Im at least covered on that end, so I can travel with my medicine wherever have I go. My family is very supportive of my medical marijuana use. They have no problems with it at all, very cool. I really appreciate, just everything that is given to me.

Patient Story - Victoria Zavala

Victoria Zavala – Systemic Lupus and Degenerative Disc Disease Transcript: My name is Victoria…

Patient Story - Victoria Zavala & Lupus

MM411 Patient Story – Victoria Zavala Part 2 Transcript: It got to the point…

Patient Story Victoria Zavala

Interview with Victoria Zavala Transcript: Time went on, and I lost my jobs, because…

Aqua Lounge Plays Host To Unconventional Foundation For Autism Fundraiser

Mieko Hester-Perez may have an unconventional foundation, but her fundraiser was anything but. A first class event, from the red carpet to the guest list, the Aqua Lounge in Beverly Hills was the perfect place for the Unconventional Foundation For Autism to hold their first event – and what an event it was!

Emily Sander - Lymphoma Cancer Survivor

VIDEO (Part 3 of 4): Medical Marijuana 411 (https://medicalmarijuana411.com) interview with Emily Sander: I don’t use medical marijuana to get high. I don’t really drink. I don’t sort of have that “I want to get high” kind of thing.

Medicinal Use of Marijuana - Appetite

VIDEO (Part 3 of 4): MedicalMarijuana411.com interview with Robert, medical marijuana user, who was prescribed marijuana edibles to counteract his weight loss problem. Using Edibles – Never a recreational drug user, Robert was first prescribed Marinol which utilizes synthetic THC to help increase appetite.

Cancer Survivor - Using A Vaporizer

VIDEO (Part 4 of 4): Medical Marijuana 411 (https://medicalmarijuana411.com) interview with Emily Sander: I don’t want smoke in my lungs, I don’t want the harsh sort of pot feeling of it and personally that not part of the ritual of it and some people like that’s the ritual of it and so then smoking a joint is not a bad way of doing it for them is part of the experience, part of the actual medication quality of it to help them calm down.

Patient Story - Bill Britt

Medical Marijuana 411 https://medicalmarijuana411.com interviews William Bill Britt who suffers from polio and epilepsy. Due to his conditions, Bill suffers from: pain, depression, nausea and insomnia. Bill talks about CBD or cannabidiol which is the major extract of cannibinoid or marijuana. CBD has been proven to be a non steriod medication anti inflammatory medicinal herb that counteracts: depression, nausea and pain. Also a mood elevator, CBD is a natural way to treat these symptoms. Bill goes on to state: “it is so wrong that this [medical marijuana] is illegal when so many people are suffering”.

William "Bill" Britt Medical Marijuana

Medical Marijuana 411 https://medicalmarijuana411.com interviews William Bill Britt who suffers from polio and epilepsy. Due to his conditions, Bill suffers from: pain, depression, nausea and insomnia. Bill talks about the effects of cannabis (marijuana) with asthma.

Medical Marijuana 411 Emily Sander

I’m Emily Sander and I’m a student of Cal State Long Beach. And I grew up in Northern California and came down here for school. I got diagnosed with lymphoma non-Hodgkins lymphoma in July it was really out of the blue. I got it from a virus there is nothing I could have done to prevent it. Ive always been really healthy. Barely ever even take even Tylenol. I’m just not a medication person, and poof now I have to take tons and tons of medication for every tiny thing. It was such a big change in my life. Even though the cancer is already gone and very positive in that part of it and I have to take tons of medications still have to finish out chemo, which is not a walk in the park worse than the cancer was. My friends even my parents friends recommended I look in to medical marijuana as a substitute for some of the medications I was taking, and especially to get my appetite back. Which was one of the worse symptoms for me was my appetite was completely gone and even when I felt like eating I had mouth sores from the chemo and I couldn’t eat.

Emily Sander - Using Medical Marijuana

VIDEO (Part 2 of 4): Medical Marijuana 411 (https://medicalmarijuana411.com) interview with Emily Sander: Emily had particular issues with nausea due to taking more than 7 different pain medications including: Vicodin and Oxycontin. A non drug user all of her life, Emily turned to the medicinal use of marijuana to counter the side effects of her nausea, headaches and chemotherapy treatments.

Breaking News - Cannabis Cures Cancer

ame is Rick Simpson. I have been providing people with Hemp Oil medicines, at no cost, for about three years. The results have been nothing short of amazing. Throughout man’s history hemp has always been known as the most medicinal plant in the world. Even with this knowledge, hemp has always been used as a political and religious football. I want this knowledge out there for everyone to learn! Watch the documentary Run From The Cure to understand more about using cannabis as a cure for cancer and other medical problems!
The current restrictions against hemp were put in place and maintained, not because hemp is evil or harmful, but for big money to make more big money, while we suffer and die needlessly. Look at a proposal such as this; if we were allowed to grow hemp in our back yards and cure our own illnesses, what do you think the reaction of the pharmaceutical industry would be to such a plan?

Dr. Sunil Aggarwal Discusses The Geography of Medical Marijuana

My name is Sunil Aggarwal. I am a trainee in the medical scientist program at the University of Washington, 4th year medical student, I hold a PhD in medical geography. Recently I was a medical student delegate to the American Medical Association. Cannabis is a botanical medicine that has an established track record of safety, non-toxicity, for 3 millennia of documented history. And effectiveness that’ been shown in numerous highly randomized control trials, all the way to case reports from numerous cultures around the world. Plus the psychologically activating properties of cannabis, which I thought, were important for stress reduction and quality of life. Plus it’s discovery, it helped caused us to discover a signaling system, in humans and throughout most living organisms, called the cannabinoid signaling system which was fascinating from a neuro-scientific standpoint for me.

Dr. Mark Ware Discusses Cannabis As Medicine

I first became familiar with about 10 years ago, when I beginning to explore the area of medical cannabis research, writing up grants, doing interviews with patients and beginning to explore this. I became aware that there was this conference being held at I think at the University of Iowa the first one, I didnt have any funding to get there. So I called them up and I said, is there a video link up, is there some way I can dial into this to watch it from Montreal where I was based. And I was able to speak to McGill, and they lent me a room, a video screen and a projector. And I watched the whole thing sitting a room, there were three or four of us sitting this room and watched the whole congress. I was amazed in the level of science, and the stories, the patient involvement. What I really liked was the patient involvement. And even today when I gave my talk, I ask the room how many people were patients in the room. And over half the room was patients. And most of the talks that I do, the conferences I go are working with the phycisions and scientists. And its really rewarding to speak to patients, meet them afterward and interact and get a sense of from them to see the level of interest they have in getting that knowledge. So I think I like the patients out of time, because of the patients that are in there. I think that is the critical piece for me.

Medical Marijuana and Glaucoma

In studies such as Cannabinoids in the Treatment of Glaucoma and lectures by David Pate, PHd, MSc, he suggests that the cannabinoid receptors in the eye (and he lists four), when bound to THC and other cannabinoids found in medical marijuana can arrest and reverse intraocular pressure and degradation to the eye. Through our CB1 receptor, medical cannabis helps to promote ‘drainage of aqueous humor and eliminate nerve damage progression’, according to Dr. Pate. Research as early as the 70’s suggests patients suffering from glaucoma and experience severe intraocular pressure or progressive blindness could greatly benefit from medical cannabis ingestion of some form.

Israeli Health Ministry Approves Request To Treat Teen, 14, With Marijuana

Israeli Health Ministry Approves Request To Treat Teen, 14, With Marijuana

There are roughly 800 Israeli patients that receive medical marijuana, with less than a dozen being minor under the age of 18.

There are roughly 800 Israeli patients that receive medical marijuana, with less than a dozen being minor under the age of 18, reports Haaretz. This December, the Health Ministry approved a request to treat another teen, a 14-year-old cancer patient who smokes medical cannabis to aid in the relief of her side effects from chemotherapy. She experiences less pain and has an increase in her appetite, once lost but has seen positive results when she medicates with medical grade cannabis. 

New Lab Testing Medical Marijuana for THC and CBD Content, Among Other Things

New Lab Testing Medical Marijuana For THC And CBD Content, Among Other Things Steep…

NIDA Funds Research That Finds Smoking Cannabis Does Not Cause Lung Cancer

Professor of Medicine at UCLA Donald Tashkin announced in June of 2005 that after a grant in 2002 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse helped fund a study that would reveal smoking marijuana did NOT cause lung cancer.

Former Seattle Police Chief, Now an Advisory Board Member of NORML

Norm Stamper, former Seattle Police Chief during the 1999 WTO protests, is a speaker for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition and as well as an advisory board member of NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws). He recently sat down with Pacific Radio’s Amy Goodman and Sonali Kolhatkar where he discusses medical marijuana, President Obama’s remarks regarding cannabis, and the dangers of drug prohibition, among other topics.