health

Marijuana an inescapable issue for health chiefs, say experts

15 Comments

The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.

© 2015 AFP

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

15 Comments
Login to comment

The CDC lists health costs for marijuana as not applicable and zero deaths. The plant is so non-toxic it does not give the user a hangover.

The US government has two patents on cannabinoids produced naturally in the cannabis plant patented as neuro-protectants.

Marijuana was used for thousands of years as medicine food and recreation with no historical evidence of harm. It is time to end the prohibition of the most therapeutic plant in nature.

9 ( +11 / -2 )

It is long past time for governments to recognize that marijuana is not the evil threat they have claimed it to be. It's safe for recreation and has many medicinal uses, too.

7 ( +9 / -2 )

For me I prefer not to partake. For supporters of canabis enjoy... Though constant opposition reports suggest negative health effects even worse than cigarettes or alcohol. It's not entirely without risk.

-8 ( +3 / -11 )

MarkG, the only significant risk to use of Marijuana is incarceration.

7 ( +9 / -2 )

It's a complete non-issue in Japan. It's not even on the public radar as a medicine. As far as Japanese people are concerned, it's still the devil's weed.

opponents cite studies pointing to marijuana as causing lung cancer or psychosis

Recent studies have shown that marijuana not only doesn't cause lung cancer, it may actually be cancer-preventing. And no study has ever shown that marijuana causes psychosis, only that it can bring out psychosis in those already predisposed to it, and even that is not guaranteed.

2 ( +5 / -3 )

And incarceration is not a bad thin Moondog? Quite costly and devastating to ones career, that is if one pursues a career.

-3 ( +2 / -5 )

No thanks, I can be healthy and happy without its intoxicating effects. When I had an accident and they gave me painkillers, all it took was one pill and I hated the effects of being drowsy and not being able to have a normal sleep or rest. I prefer the pain to experience the drug effects. I am already graduated from these beliefs.

-7 ( +0 / -7 )

MarkG, I guess you missed the irony in my statement that the only risk of Marijuana use is incarceration. If the only risk of use is incarceration, then incarceration is clearly an inappropriate result. The law should be changed.

Avigator, your experience with "pain killers" has no bearing on the medicinal use of marijuana. If you were having dozens of seizures every day and marijuana was the only medicine that would stop the seizures, would you refuse marijuana "because you hate the effects of being drowsy?"

2 ( +3 / -1 )

A close friend of mine, a Japanese female doctor, died last year of cancer. We'd talked over the years a few times about the possible medical applications of marijuana, but she remained extremely wary - until she found that she was left with a choice of pain or appetite.

For such a wonderful woman, the suffering she had to endure in her final months was tragic - doubly so as much of it might have been avoided.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

Japan is quite backwards in this regard. Marihuana, compared to alcohol or tobacco is a harmless drug. But it all depends on the user. Common sense is still required (but not prevalent as recent accidents involving the so called herbal drugs show).

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Marijuana has been an integral part of Japanese culture rooted deeply in history but the Ministry of Health considers it a bad drug and a narcotic so it has never conducted any research into the physical and mental effects of marijuana. However there is a organization that gets together and studies the application of marijuana. They have actually concluded the value of medical marijuana and are resolving to change the law. These people are creating awareness and real understanding among the medical community, patients, and doctors hoping that the medical people will eventually tell the lawmakers. It is sad but many Japanese doctors are largely unaware of the applications of marijuana. In the end patients should have the right to any medicine which may have some useful effect. I wish the organization the very best as they strive to make medical marijuana a reality.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

On a personal level, my father was in bad health for over a decade. He had cancer at one point, and managed to get it into remission through normal medical methods, but he has high blood pressure, heart problems, and other issues as well. I went home in 2012 to visit him, and he was looking very rough. I made a trip to the local dispensary in his town and got some information on how someone could become one of their clients, and passed it on to my father. I went and saw him again this past fall. He had been smoking marijuana for a year, and the difference was night and day. He was alert, not constantly in pain, and just in better spirit and health overall. I was amazed. I got the information for him simply so he could ease some of his pain, but it seems to have done a lot more than that for him. He is even talking of coming and visiting me here in Japan, something I thought would never happen again when I saw him in 2012.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Medicinal use, fine... but I'm still against it being used as a recreational drug.

-4 ( +0 / -4 )

I'm still against it being used as a recreational drug.

Nothing wrong with that either. You've been brainwashed.

That said, using it in Japan is stupid - the laws of the land should be respected.

-1 ( +0 / -1 )

Gupta: 'I am doubling down' on medical marijuana By Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN Chief Medical Correspondent http://edition.cnn.com/2013/08/08/health/gupta-changed-mind-marijuana/ More Resources: Medical Conditions for Marijuana/ Cannabis Treatment Below is a general list of ailments with symptoms and/or side effects that have been treated with medical marijuana ( a slang name)= ( real name CANNABIS ).* Please click on the Ailments that are links for more detailed information. https://www.marijuanadoctors.com/content/ailments/index

Important to take in consideration: Anti-Cannabis Academics Funded by Prescription Painkiller Manufacturers By Sara Dilley — 9/8/2014

Legalization opponents have turned to academic researchers in an effort to keep prohibition alive. If you’ve tuned into the news recently, you’ve probably heard academics make vague claims that marijuana is too dangerous, too risky, and too untested; that it’s unsafe for medicinal use. You may (or may not) be surprised to learn that many of those key researchers are actually paid by Big Pharma.

This week, VICE proved that the leading academic opponents to cannabis are paid by drug companies who manufacture prescription painkillers. These include professors from Columbia and Harvard Universities, as well as one private practitioner who is certified by the American Society of Addiction Medicine.

Dr. Herbert Kleber of Columbia University has warned against the use of marijuana in the press, citing that it may cause “wide-ranging addiction and public health issues.” What he neglects to mention is that he has served as a paid consultant to leading prescription drug companies, including the maker of OxyContin (Purdue Pharma).

Dr. A. Eden Evins of Harvard Medical School is another anti-cannabis academic with ties to Big Pharma. A member of Project SAM, an anti-marijuana advocacy group, she is also a “consultant for Pfizer and DLA Piper, and has received grant/research support from Envivo, GlaxoSmithKline, and Pfizer.”

This news confirms beliefs long-held by cannabis activists who suspected painkiller manufacturers of financially supporting anti-cannabis legislation, and it’s no surprise. Cannabis is known to effectively treat chronic pain without the dangerous side effects of opiates, as demonstrated by the 25% decrease in painkiller overdoses in states with medical cannabis access.

video : <www.youtube.com/watch?v=shNq_K7rrf8>

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites