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Our drug priorities need to change

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Tue, 08/31/2010 - 9:45pm
By MINDELLE JACOBS, Toronto Sun
 
The federal government has it half right. We have a drug problem. But it’s not marijuana, which has never killed anyone. It’s the abuse of prescription drugs which kills hundreds of Canadians annually.
 
Whether it’s because of ongoing pain, depression or the urge to get high, more and more people are heading to their doctors — not the neighbourhood pusher — for a fix.
 
As the International Narcotics Control Board noted in its 2009 annual report, the abuse of prescription drugs in North America is second only to the abuse of cannabis.

Smoking marijuana relieves some pain: study

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Mon, 08/30/2010 - 9:33pm
CBC News
 
Smoking marijuana does help relieve a certain amount of pain, a small but well-designed Canadian study has found.
 
People who suffer chronic neuropathic or nerve pain from damage or dysfunction of the nervous system have few treatment options with varying degrees of effectiveness and side-effects.
 
Neuropathic pain is caused by damage to nerves that don't repair, which can make the skin sensitive to a light touch.
 
Cannabis pills have been shown to help treat some types of pain but the effects and risks from smoked cannabis were unclear.

Marijuana effective in reducing pain, study shows

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Mon, 08/30/2010 - 9:25pm
By: Caroline Alphonso, Globe and Mail
 
A team of Montreal researchers has lent scientific credibility to the view that smoking marijuana can ease chronic neuropathic pain and help patients sleep better.
 
People suffering from neuropathic pain often turn to opioids, antidepressants and local anesthetics, but those treatments have limitations and the side effects can be punishing. Many physicians and policy-makers, however, are reluctant to advocate the use of cannabis since there has been little scientific research into its effectiveness, even though patients champion its use.

Pot lowers chronic pain even without the high: Study

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Mon, 08/30/2010 - 9:09pm
By Sharon Kirkey, Vancouver Sun
 
Briefly inhaling cannabis three times a day eases a kind of chronic pain that affects tens of thousands of Canadians — without making them high — Montreal researchers are reporting.
 
The new study, the first clinical trial in the world to allow patients to take marijuana home with them and "self-dose," found that for people with neuropathic pain — a common and dreaded condition that causes electric, stabbing pain — smoking cannabis reduced pain, improved mood and helped them sleep.

Up in smoke

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Mon, 08/30/2010 - 9:05pm
By CHARLIE FIDELMAN, The Gazette
 
Chris's pain relief lies in half a cookie made with marijuana, eaten every two hours, plus one or two puffs off a joint on the hour and the occasional pot lollipop.
 
Chris started using legal marijuana, furnished by Health Canada, to dampen constant pain and improve sleep and mood, after a violent car accident shattered the bones in his face.
 
He switched to pot once standard prescription drugs like Dilaudid and OxyContin failed. Marijuana was his last hope.

No busts for this grow-op

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Wed, 02/24/2010 - 7:56pm
 
 
Some local residents are turning to an old-fashioned remedy to treat medical problems, such as severe pain.
 
That remedy is medical marijuana and it’s grown in the area — legally.
 
Jane and John Doe (not real names for security reasons) have a government licence to grow medical marijuana.
 
Jane says they completed a 15-page application and had a criminal record check before the licence for production was issued.
 
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An EndProhibition Personal Account: Robert Ling

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Mon, 02/08/2010 - 6:05pm
The following is a personal account from one of our End Prohibition members in Ontario. He is one of thousands of Canadians who suffer from a malady that can be alleviated by the use of cannabis (marijuana). Although 4000 people in Canada are exempted from criminal sanctions for their choice in medication, many tens of thousands more have been unable to access this respite from the drug war.

In this account Robert relates his experiences with his illness, his medicinal use of cannabis, and the bureaucratic labyrinth of the Canadian Medical Marijuana Access Regulations (MMAR). He is one of many thousands of Canadians who use cannabis safely and should not fear criminal penalty for this personal health decision.

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