Wednesday, April 30, 2008

‘Medical’ marijuana is snake oil remedy

David Taylor and Jeanette McDougal, Duluth News Tribune
Published Sunday, April 27, 2008


Most Minnesota government officials want the best possible health and safety measures for their fellow citizens. Legalizing as medicine marijuana cigarettes not approved by the Food and Drug Administration or Minnesota Health Department is not such a measure.

What is called “medical marijuana” is a toxic, tar-laden weed used in various forms (cigarettes, bowls, bongs and brownies ). Users generally are seeking the “high-producing” chemical, tetrahydrocannabinol — THC — one of the 66 bio-active chemicals (cannabinoids) found only in marijuana. THC pills have been available by medical prescription for at least 20 years. Do we really need a THC cigarette when a THC pill is legally and medically available?

Smoking a weed for medicine is the pharmacological equivalent of eating moldy bread for penicillin or eating poppy seeds for morphine. All contain contaminants, and none in their raw form is approved for safety and efficacy by the FDA.

Physicians worldwide — in the United States, England, Holland, and especially Canada — are concerned about their liability, should harm result to their patients.

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