Taste of bliss: A look into medical marijuana

Graphic art by Timmy Lomarda

With media and youth culture sensationalizing the thrilling risks of illegal drug use, legalizing marijuana for medical purposes has been the talk of the town. Aside from its recreational uses, cannabis or marijuana may well be considered a potentially disease-healing medical magic for some people, but its impending chance for abuse poses a huge threat to the well-being of the general public.

The hot seat

Marijuana—commonly known by its street names: pot, weed, and joint—is produced from the Cannabis sativa or Cannabis indica plant, which can be consumed recreationally or medically through smoke, tea, or as a special add-on for brownies. Although it is legal to possess in some countries like Argentina, Chile, and Columbia, marijuana carries a bad image as a leisure drug in the Philippines’ sensitive culture. Because of this, marijuana’s validity as a drug continues to be debated upon nationally and locally.

Despite living in a conservative country, the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency reports that the Philippines’ Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 continues to remain unfelt as the illegal usage and cultivation of marijuana continues to plague the country. Until now, cannabis is nurtured in the remote mountainous regions of Luzon and Mindanao, and the black market remains prevalent that even students are granted easy access to it.

Yet earlier this year, the Philippines preservation of the conservative status quo was tested when a bill concerning the legalization of marijuana for medicinal purposes was introduced. The House Bill 4477 or the “Compassionate use of medical cannabis act” led by Isabela Representative Rodolfo Albano III was proposed in 2014 and is still being analyzed by the Department of Health. This bill came into the spotlight supported by groups like the Philippine Cannabis Compassion Society and the Philippine Moms for Marijuana. Both cannabis advocates composed mostly of patients and parents of ill-stricken children came with the hope of experiencing the medical benefits of marijuana.

However, this bill immediately faced oppositions, especially since the word “marijuana” is enough to make most Filipinos cringe. At the same time, the bill seemed unnecessary since the Republic Act 9165, an act concerning dangerous drugs already exists. The R.A. 9165 can be considered as the source of this new bill as its aims are almost the same—to achieve a balance in the national drug control program and medical needs from potentially dangerous drugs like marijuana.

In relation with a medical expert’s remark, the chair of the Committee on Public Order and Dangerous Drugs Senator Grace Poe says that there is a need to ensure the country’s preparedness to regulate marijuana production and distribution to guarantee that it would not get abused.

On the other hand, it would take a long time before this drug becomes accepted in a conservative Catholic country, but if ever that does happen, the Philippines will be the first country to legalize marijuana in the culture-bound Asia.

The medical marvel

Despite the debates around this new bill concerning the legalization of medical marijuana, discoveries and claims of the therapeutic benefits of marijuana are being reported worldwide. A CNN report spotlighted Charlotte’s web, a type of cannabis produced by the Realm of Caring Foundation in Colorado, United States (US). It was named after Charlotte Figi who has experienced a reduction of epileptic seizures brought on by dravet syndrome, a severe myoclonic epilepsy of infancy, after her first dose of medical marijuana at age five. Used as oil, Charlotte’s web is a kind of marijuana with high levels of a chemical called cannabidol, which has psychiatric medication qualities like anxiolytic, antipsychotic, and anti-inflammatory properties; and low levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which makes marijuana beneficial as THC induces hallucinations and delusions.

Other than this form of marijuana, the United Kingdom’s approved medicine Sativex, which contains a compound called Nabiximol, is a specific chemical extract of Cannabis used as an oral spray designed to treat the stiff muscles and spasms of multiple sclerosis spasticity and control the chronic pain state of neuropathic pain, according to medicines.org.uk.

Meanwhile, smoking marijuana doesn’t impair lung function, in fact, it can even increase lung capacity through deep breathing and inhaling the drug. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association states that low to moderate marijuana users showed escalated lung capacity compared to non-smokers on two exhalation tests.

Marijuana is also known for the treatment of anorexia associated with the appetite loss in patients with Acquired Immunity Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). The THC in marijuana improves the sensory aspects of food like taste and smell, as noted by Dr. Donald I. Abrams, professor of clinical medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. This substance in marijuana can also be used as a treatment of nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy.

Because of marijuana’s major components: cannabidol and THC, the medical usage of the drug when accompanied with proper dosage can become a cheap and flexible corrective for various diseases—a huge asset in today’s generation of rising medication costs.

A dirty trick

Despite the relief marijuana can bring, it can play a sullied scheme to those who misuse it. Since researches have not conducted enough large-scale clinical trials that support the medical use of marijuana, many experts doubt its validity. The US Federal Drug Enforcement Administration has even classified marijuana as a “schedule one drug,” suggesting that it has a high potential for abuse and is not approved by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Among the arguments, marijuana’s characteristic as a “gateway drug” or a drug that leads users to use more illicit drugs remains persistent. The US Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences proves that marijuana use typically foreshadows ingestion of more seriously addictive drugs like cocaine, meth, and heroin.

Another downside of marijuana is that when smoked, the drug is releases quickly into your bloodstream on its way to your brain and other organs, and targets the respiratory, circulatory, digestive, immune, and central nervous system. While a regular smoker has an increased risk of developing bronchitis, lung infections, and even lung cancer; a marijuana smoker is in further danger as users are more prone to heart attack. At the same time, although the THC can increase one’s appetite, it can be mind-altering and damaging to the immune system, making users more prone to physical illnesses.

As for brain health, the earlier people start their marijuana habit, the worse their brain gets damaged, particularly those who started using the drug in their adolescent years when the brain is still developing, as reported by Melbourne’s Murdoch Children’s Research Institute Australian researcher team led by Dr. Marc Seal. The long-term effects of cannabis affects the brain’s white matter, which is responsible for communication between the different areas of grey matter—the part responsible for thinking. Aside from reducing more than 80 percent of white matter in the brains of marijuana users, long term marijuana usage may also lead to memory impairment and shortfalls in learning and concentration ability.

Weed symbolizes freedom, bliss, and tranquility to cannabis adherents in today’s culture, but for what it’s worth, marijuana can be alarming as it poses many dangers to its consumers. Enticing people to use the drug with its guarantee to amplify your senses may seem a little too promising as it covers the underlying horrid side effects of marijuana.

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Although we might continuously hear the negative sides of marijuana, ongoing studies on its medical benefits are now emerging and giving hope to a lot of disease-stricken Filipinos. But the answer depends on how it will be regulated and how the people will choose to use marijuana for better or worse.