Legalizing Marijuana for Medicinal Purposes - Essay Example

As compared to many other drugs, the use of marijuana involves several potential risks that have far reaching effects on a person’s body and intellect. To be specific, legalizing marijuana seems irrational as the medicinal effect of the drug has not been sufficiently supported by reliable clinical trials other than certain claims based on the experiences of a few. To illustrate, it is ‘Cannabinoids’ in marijuana that evokes medicinal effect in a patient’s body. The proponents of marijuana as a medicinal plant says that it has extensive medicinal use when “smoked for nausea, glaucoma, appetite stimulation, mucous membrane inflammation, leprosy, fever, dandruff, hemorrhoids, obesity, asthma, urinary tract infections, cough, anorexia associated with weight loss in AIDS patients, pain, and multiple sclerosis” (Marijuana overview information).

However, the use of marijuana in the treatment of the above stated conditions can tackle with the pain or symptoms only for a while. Once the effect of the dose administered ends, the illness deteriorates. The effective use of marijuana as a medicine is impossible for several reasons. The main factor is that marijuana’s medicinal effect cannot be evaluated well as the plant contains hundreds of chemical substances; and another reason is that the dose and frequency of the drug cannot be determined as it lacks substance consistency having measurable ingredients (National Institute on Drug Abuse).

Many people undermine the actual threat of the substance pointing to the fact that some states like Washington have already legalized it. However, it does not mean that using marijuana involves little threat now. . However, it does not mean that using marijuana involves little threat now. Obviously, dependence will cause numerous impairments including but not limited to memory loss, distractions, and permanent brain damage. The effect of the drug varies from person to person depending on the user’s age, sex, health etc.

Hence it increases the uncertainty about the drug’s reasonable dose or effect. The statistics show the intensity of the marijuana consumption rate in the United States especially among the adolescence and adults. Evidently, the attitude toward the risk factor has been softened among adolescents for the past few years. According to The Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN)’s estimation, “in 2008, marijuana was a contributing factor in over 374,000 emergency department (ED) visits in the United States, with about two-thirds of patients being male, and 13 percent between the ages of 12 and 17” (National Institute on Drug Abuse).

This alarming rate not only shows the addictive effects of the drug but also the social threats caused by the legalization of marijuana. As per the Reuters report, marijuana has already become the ‘drug of choice’ among the young adults in the United States. A comparison between the statistics of 2007 and 2010 shows a notable increase in the marijuana consumption rate. 6.9 percent of the population used marijuana in 2010 whereas in 2007, it was only 5.8 percent (Reuters, 2011). Evidently, this increase can be attributed to the attitude change evoked by the legalization of the drug in many states.

Marijuana consumption has been noted as the prime cause of a number of social menaces in many parts of the country. The adverse effects of its consumption on the mind and body of an individual