Legalizing Marijuana for Medical Purposes - Essay Example

"Legalizing Marijuana for Medical Purposes" is a perfect example of a paper on medical ethics. Marijuana, also known as cannabis Sativa, is widely known as a mild stimulant. Some proponents are for the legalization of Marijuana with the reason for medical purposes. Similarly, there are some critiques on the same topic. This issue is worth research since there is an ongoing debate in almost all nation-states on whether marijuana usage should be legalized or not. I will look into the carried out research reports, documented journals, and other relevant resources to depict the legalization of Marijuana and, more specifically, medical purposes.

Marijuana is medically taken to have some benefits, especially in handling sleep problems and some other chronic disorders (Azcarate et al., 2020). Israel and Canada are among the very first states to legalize the usage of Marijuana with the primary reasons associated with medical purposes. The increased usage of the drug in Canada specifically raised some economic implications, in which increased taxation on trading the drug contributed to the economic boom in Canada (Hajizadeh, 2016).

There is a debate over the legalization of Marijuana because some proponents for legalization have not sufficiently provided informed knowledge for medical purposes. On the other hand, the critiques feel like the already provided information is insufficient to base the legalization on just matters to do with health. Secondly, critics argue that the health implications associated with marijuana usage cause more harm to the well-being of an individual than good. I am yet to carry out my research and back up the ongoing debate on the same.

Arguments for
Marijuana has been expansively used among the US population for medical purposes, though there are no clear medical conditions that the very drug is used to address (Azcarate et al., 2020). An online probability survey conducted by Azcarate and the team in 2017 shows that the medical purposes given for the use of Marijuana included insomnia, depression, and chronic pain. The survey further revealed that women mostly used Marijuana with the motive of dealing with migraines and sleep disorders. The government has legalized the usage of this drug in almost 33 states in the US, where Texas serves as a better example.

According to Tanco et al. (2018), research carried out on cancer patients in two different zones; a legal marijuana state (Arizona) and a non-legalized state (Texas), showed that the patients strongly supported the use of Marijuana giving a reason of Marijuana helping in increasing appetite and relieving pain. However, there is no sufficient data to back up the validity of the given reasons that can account for medical purposes as far as the health of both cancer patients and other citizens is concerned.

The effectiveness of the medical usage of Marijuana depends on how it is administered and the type of circumstances under which it is applied. For instance, California has successfully achieved this by mainstreaming Marijuana for the medical treatment of arthritis, anorexia, and even AIDS. This reveals the medical significance of states legalizing Marijuana and allowing medical practitioners to apply the drug to patients of important need.

Marijuana can treat neurological and mental disorders. Doctors sometimes prescribe Marijuana as a treatment for some conditions due to the effects on the limbic system. Mental conditions like multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, and Parkinson's disease are mental. Similarly, the very drug has an effect on sleep management since a specific dosage of Marijuana helps in reducing pain associated with insomnia disorder and accelerates in improving sleep (Azcarate et al., 2020).

Arguments against
Canada and Israel were the very first states to legalize the use of Marijuana. This very drug has brought positive and negative impacts to Canada despite its primary role of legalization, which was medical purposes. There is a number of social, economic, and health implications brought about by this very drug. Economically, the legalization of the drug has boosted the tax revenue of the country giving an aspect of the economic boom in the region. Contrary, the high demand for the drug in the country has increased the emergency of black markets to cater to the recurring needs, something that has posed the lives of the children in danger since there is no accountability on the drug dealers. Similarly, excessive usage of Marijuana has caused brain development problems among the youth (Hajizadeh, 2016).

Uncontrolled use of Marijuana leads to addiction and increased crime rates. This is evident among the youth in which some uncontrolled and uninformed approaches like accidents, prostitution, and other crime-related issues emerge and this is evident in Colorado where excessive marijuana usage resulted in mental disorders among the youth, something that raised the need for the building of more rehabilitation centers in the region (Hughes, Schaible, & Jimmerson, 2020).

According to the report carried out by Rezkalla & Kloner (2019), Marijuana causes some cardiovascular effects. They found that the usage of Marijuana has been associated with a number of medical problems brought as a result of smoking as the most form in which it is used. One of the major problems is cardiac toxicity that is associated with conditions like cardiac arrest, acute coronary syndrome, and atrial fibrillation.
Conclusion
In my opinion, I am both for and against the legalization of Marijuana. I support its legalization for the purpose of the economic boost of a state, and this is evident in Canada. The revenue collected on trading marijuana can boost the GDP of a country, thus boosting its economic growth, though with a strict, transparent, monitored controlled system to prevent the emergence of black markets. My opinion is that the mental conditions associated with mental redundancy among the youth who are the productive age of any country are a negative effect since the economy of any state affected by such is highly compromised.