cannabisnews.com: Marijuana as Medicine: The Battle Continues! Marijuana as Medicine: The Battle Continues! Posted by FoM on May 24, 1999 at 19:59:51 PT Source: ALLHERB.com The controversy over marijuana's medicinal benefits rears its ugly head again as a new government study, commissioned by the White House, determined that the active ingredients in marijuana appear to be useful for treating chronic pain, relieving nausea for terminally ill patients, and easing the severe weight loss associated with AIDS. The report's acknowledgment of marijuana's medicinal use challenges the federal government's unwavering 60-year stance denying that the drug has any medicinal benefits. In addition, the report found no evidence that giving marijuana to sick people would increase illicit use among the general population, nor did it find marijuana to be a "gateway" drug that prompts patients to use harder drugs, such as cocaine and heroin.In their report, the 11 independent experts who made up the panel appointed by the Institutes of Medicine, a branch of the National Academy of Sciences, cautioned that the benefits of smoking marijuana are limited because the smoke itself is so toxic. Despite this, they recommended that the drug be given, on a short-term basis and under close supervision, to patients who did not respond to other therapies.Click the above link to read the whole article! Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #5 posted by Pat on May 26, 1999 at 10:10:05 PT Thank You FoM, You Too.... Thank you FoM...for your very kind post for me! I really appreciate it FoM, I do.... ....FoM, most unfortunately, this "pathetic war" is causing the totally needless deaths of thousands of U.S. Citizens, each and every year... AND far too much needless pain and suffering for many thousands, and probably tens of thousands or more, more every year. I do truely hope that most U.S. Citizens will become aware of these tragic facts, very soon... AND then help to quickly rectify this backwards, totally unjust, disasterous situation, ASAP. .... ....Well, thanks again, FoM, both for your kind, good and gracious wishes for me, and for your wisdom you've left us in the PS: section of your last comment to me. Yes FoM, after a terrible tragedy strikes, somehow, those left behind, must struggle to carry on and to make the most of whatever time is left allotted to them.Peace, FoM. Please Take Care, Tomorrow. Pat.Ps. FoM, I meant to mention this before.... I'm sure no one will mind if you take tommorow off (or part of tommorow.) Thank you FoM.... [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by FoM on May 26, 1999 at 09:35:36 PT You're So Kind! Thanks Pat! You are a dear! We will win this pathetic war! We've come too far to turn back now! Don't overdo and get your rest. I don't want you getting sick too! I've seen enough sickness in my lifetime with those I love so please take care!Peace, FoM!PS: You never heal from losing a child but my son's spirit and the love he had for life keeps me going! That's what he told me he wanted for me before he died! [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by Pat on May 26, 1999 at 09:23:34 PT Tks FoM - The Protective Effects of Cannabis Smoke Hi FoM,thanks for your continuing good efforts, here and elsewhere too, and for your polite responses to me, and others here.... **Btw, FoM, not only is Cannabis Smoke (apparently...) ever so much safer than Tobacco Smoke, Dr. Tashkin found that cannabis smokers smoked about 1/7 the amount of smoke as tobacco smokers smoke.** ***This implies, I gather, that even though the people who smoked both tobacco and cannabis smoked 7 times less cannabis than tobacco, the protective effects of the Cannabis Smoke were so *very* strong, that they *still* experienced the same rate of lung function decline with age, as did folks who smoked nothing at all!*** ***Again, the folks who smoked only Tobacco, suffered a much faster rate of decline in lung function with time than did those who didn't smoke at all, or those who smoked just cannabis, or those who smoked both tobacco AND cannabis.*** .... ....I, too, am especially interested in the B.E. Smith case, and Peter McWilliams, etc. - so thanks for getting that story here quickly, FoM. Well, FoM, I gotta try to catch a nap, as I could not sleep earlier (got kinda sweaty writing an very long letter, last night/this morning.) Btw, FoM, I hope that if you had any visitors recently, a pleasurable time was had by all. .... .... ....Also, FoM, on a much sadder note, I'm sorry to read that tomorrow is the 3rd aniversary of your Son's death. ... I am sure there are pains people never really get over, but I guess and hope, that given enough time and health and by staying productively busy enough, the hurt can be made more manageable, etc. .... Well... anyway, FoM, I hope you don't mind me saying this, here.... [Sorry, FoM, this is the best I can do now... I'm sore, tired and headachy....] .... ....I only have time for a small nap, now; not time for a shower, which I also need.... Well, FoM, the "top" and "bottom" of me are hurting some (now, I wonder why? :)Oh, FoM, if I get a chance, I may zip you some non-cannabis herbal "info", in a bit.Well, thanks again, FoM, et. al.May we live to see an end to this War against the Sick and the Dying, and against All U.S. Citizens....Pat. [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by FoM on May 25, 1999 at 15:31:56 PT "Experts" Who Aren't Experts.... Thanks Pat!I agree with you that tobacco is far more harmful then cannabis smoke. I think it's all the chemicals they put in tobacco to keep it fresh that are the downfall of tobacco, not tobacco itself. Many cultures have smoked tobacco without the effects that the modern cigarette has in my opinion.Cannabis is pure if grown correctly and shouldn't have long term effects like prescription drugs can have since so many of them effect the liver and I think that is one of the big causes of liver disease in our country and they only blame alcohol!Peace, FoM! [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by Pat on May 25, 1999 at 13:54:19 PT "Experts" Who Aren't Experts.... Prescript. Hi Guys, the MICROSOFT InternetExplorer Browser I was using to try to post this post, earlier today, crashed Big Time. Anyway, here, finally, is my Comment Post. [BTW, I was rather tired when I wrote this, below. I hope it makes sense…. Thanks."Experts" Who Aren't Expert....Hi FoM,I should be sleeping now, and hope to be soon. However, I was reading through your posts for this past day (thanks) and I read about BE Smith BEing railroaded by the government, and this story, here. I clicked on the link here, and read, what appears to be (according to the link you posted, FoM...) Total Falsehoods, being perpetuated by these "experts" who wrote this report.The link says, in part.--".... In their report, the 11 independent experts who made up the panel appointed by the Institutes of Medicine, a branch of the National Academy of Sciences, cautioned that the *benefits of smoking marijuana are limited because the smoke itself is so toxic.* Despite this, they recommended that the drug be given, on a short-term basis and under close supervision, to patients who did not respond to other therapies.*Marijuana smoke, they said, is even more toxic than tobacco smoke and can cause cancer,* lung damage, and complications during pregnancy. *The true benefits of marijuana will only be realized when alternative methods, such as capsules, patches, and bronchial inhalers, are developed to deliver its active components, called cannabinoids, to the body without the harmful effect of smoke.* ...."FoM and all, I believe the above words about cannabis smoke being "even more toxic than tobacco smoke" is totally wrong and misleading, etc.Dr. Tashkin (sp?), the world's expert in these matters, has studied: cannabis smokers, tobacco smokers and people who smoke both. Here's what he found.***1.) People *who smoke tobacco suffer a much faster decline in their lung function with time, than those who smoke nothing at all.****2.) People who smoke cannabis suffer that *same* rate of decline in their lung function, *as those who smoke nothing.****3.) People *who smoke both tobacco and cannabis suffer the same decline in lung function with time, as those who do not smoke at all.**So... we see our government paid panel of "experts" didn't tell the Truth about the health benefits of SMOKED cannabis. Namely, not only do cannabis smokers' lungs seem to be protected "from the smoke" by smoking cannabis, but, *if they also smoke tobacco, the cannabis smoke seems to protect the smokers' lungs from (at least some of...) the ill effects of smoking tobacco.* ****Also, our "experts" say that smoking cannabis causes lung cancer. I know of NO study (singular) which supports their assertion that cannabis smoking causes lung cancer (or, for that matter, any other type of cancer.)***Our "experts" were also very misleading, when they said in the government report, that ~"only non-smoked versions of cannabis would be [and here, I think they said the word...] "safe" for ~"long term use."A. Read about Dr. Tashkin's Study, above, and....B. These "experts" should have also been aware of the fact that you can extract out the beneficial cannabinoids, etc., from the cannabis plant, and smoke that alone, without smoking "all the cannabis vegetable plant matter" [that is, leaves and/or flowers, etc.]Well, FoM, I hope this helps to set the record a bit straighter than this government paid for, and sponsored, report did.I hope the folks reading this will help to spread the Truth about the beneficial effects of smoked cannabis.Many Thanks, FoM. Thanks, Guys.Pat.- - - -- - - -Ps. Hey Folks, it looks like the government is trying to get the legal drug pushing Pharmaceutical Companies to make a "drug" out of one, or some, of the beneficial chemicals in the Cannabis Plant, so they - and their drug-pushing cohorts, the M.D.'s - can push their legal "white powder" drugs. It looks like the government may want to have a legal, prescription, pharmaceutical drug made from the Cannabis Plant, and then sit back and say the following. "See now? The (legal) drug companies have made that deadly drug, marijuana, into a safe pill which you can get a prescription for. So NOW... there's absolutely NO REASON whatsoever, for ANYONE to ever use the Cannabis Plant again."Please Good Folks, don't let them get away with this Terrible Theft of your Rights, your Health and your Money.Thanks. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment Name: Optional Password: E-Mail: Subject: Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message] Link URL: Link Title: