History of the Medical Use of Marijuana Essay Example

The report is complete despite some condensed or deleted references. It covers the history of medical marihuana use, providing a broad overview of its current and projected research. This includes various historical settings and circumstances in ancient China, Egypt, India, Greece, Africa, and the Western World. Therapeutic use of Cannabis sativa date back nearly 5,000 years ago (Mikuriya, 1969:34), with products being noted for their physiological and psychological effects around the world. Despite knowledge of its properties in Chinese and Indian cultures from early times, it did not become widespread in the Near and Middle East until after the fifth century AD.

Scholars assert that cannabis was first utilized in Persia and Arabia as an antiseptic and analgesic, as travelers, adventurers, and traders began to disseminate knowledge of the drug westward. Over time, other medicinal applications emerged and spread across Eastern Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. Western medical professionals only adopted cannabis more widely several years after Napoleon's army departed from Egypt. Prior to that point in time, cannabis had limited use as a treatment for issues like burns.

Napoleon's scientific team showed interest in the pain-relieving and sedative effects of a particular drug. This drug gained significant attention after the rule of Napoleon in France, especially after 1840, when physicians like O'Shaughnessy, Aubert-Roche, and Moreau de Tours started studying its effects. In France's literary movement from 1840-1860, notable names like Gautier, Baudelaire, and Dumas enjoyed cannabis as an intoxicant of the intellectual classes. In the United States, it was noticed that cannabis use had therapeutic applications, as evidenced by the Committee on Cannabis Indica of the Ohio State Medical Society in 1860

(McMeens, 1860: 1).

Walton noted that from 1840 to 1890, more than 100 articles advised cannabis for various ailments. However, due to concerns about its intoxicating effects, the government of India formed the India Hemp Commission in 1893-94 to investigate cannabis use. This inquiry coincided with increasing usage of other medications that were more effective and easier to regulate than cannabis. Consequently, its medical application declined and it lost support from the medical profession between 1856-1937. As a result, instead of being recognized as medicine, cannabis developed an infamous reputation as an intoxicant.

The federal government passed a law against marijuana in 1937 because of public outrage and media pressure. Marijuana was already deemed illegal in many states, but the discussion about its medical benefits remained controversial. Dr. William C. Woodward, who opposed the use of cannabis, testified during the Taxation of Marihuana hearings as the only physician, admitting that there were specific medical cases where cannabis could not be substituted adequately.

The House of Representatives hearings in 1937 recognized that the work of Pascal suggested that Indian Hemp could reveal the subconscious, making it valuable for psychological, psychoanalytic, and psychotherapeutic research. While cannabis drugs are no longer used in "western" medicine, they remain prevalent in the Ayruvedic, Unani, and Tibbi systems of medicine in the Indian-Pakistani subcontinent. The Pharmacopoeias of India mention recent cannabis use and list two preparations - a liquid extract and a tincture - in their 1954 and 1966 editions, providing descriptions of cannabis and its extraction process (Chopra & Chopra, 1957: 9).

According to a recent source, opium and cannabis are still commonly used in modern-day India and Pakistan for both medicinal

and illegal purposes. Additionally, the use of hemp resin is prevalent in traditional medicine practices where it is harvested, particularly in India as reported by Bouquet.

The 1962 Bulletin on Narcotics indicated that cannabis possesses sedative, hypnotic, analgesic, anti-spasmodic, and anti-hemorrhoidal properties. However, the Canadian Commission of Inquiry into the Non-Medical Use of Drugs found no widely accepted medical uses for cannabis in North America beyond experimental applications. Even though it may have potential medicinal benefits, further research is required to establish its effectiveness or if alternative drugs can be used as substitutes. Western medicine lost interest in this natural substance during the twentieth century because of its varying potency and instability over time.

Cannabis has been utilized to alleviate the symptoms and discomfort of influenza and the common cold, both historically and presently in North America, albeit as an illicit means.

Various sources, such as Erich Goode's "Marijuana" and Goodman and Gilman's "Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics," have indicated that there is no comprehensive scientific research on the medicinal advantages of cannabis, leaving its potential for medical use unclear. A statement from 1970 casts doubt on the purported therapeutic properties of marijuana due to inadequate scientific investigation.

Recent information indicates that although cannabis has been historically used for medicinal purposes and shows potential antibacterial properties, there are no reliable indications supporting its use as a therapeutic drug. It is no longer an approved medication and obtaining cannabis or synthetic THC for research requires special procedures. Hollister (1971:27) notes several difficulties with using cannabis medically, including slow onset with oral THC doses and high doses causing unpleasant psychotomimetic-like perceptual issues when used to promote sleep.

It can be challenging to determine

the appropriate dosage for sedative effects during titration, and this medication does not offer any unique advantages in comparison to other sedative-hypnotics. In 1971, the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare's report to Congress on "Marihuana and Health" reaffirmed the Canadian Interim Report of Inquiry into the Non-Medical Use of Drugs by stating that cannabis is not acknowledged as having medical benefits in the United States except within experimental contexts (DHEW: 1971: 27).

According to Allen Geller and Maxwell Boas (1969: 4), cannabis' reputation has hindered further research. Despite some authorities discrediting its therapeutic benefits, others suggest its medical value could be rediscovered through additional research or use. David Solomon, in The Marihuana Papers (1968: xxi), advocates for cannabis to regain its former status as a legitimate prescription item for medical purposes. However, after the Marihuana Tax Act passed in 1937 and subsequent federal and state legislation, physicians were unable to acquire or prescribe marijuana preparations. As a result, the medical profession lost access to a versatile pharmaceutical tool with a long history of therapeutic benefits dating back thousands of years. A 1970 article entitled "Pot Facing Stringent Scientific Examination" references Dr.

According to Par, there are three areas currently conducting chemical and animal experiments: analgesia-mood elevation, blood pressure reduction, and psychotherapeutic drugs. The studies funded by the National Institute of Mental Health in 1961, cited by Mikuriya, included specialized animal experiments, sociologic observations of various drugs, and chemical detection methods. Feinglass suggested dividing clinical studies of marijuana into four categories, as discussed in 1968 (206-208).

Marijuana has various effects, which include its anticonvulsant qualities that can help treat conditions including tetanus, rabies-induced convulsions, infant convulsions and epilepsy.

It also possesses psychotherapeutic properties that stimulate appetite, alleviate depression and anxiety and work as a sedative or hypnotic. Moreover, it can be an effective treatment for addiction and exhibits antibiotic characteristics. There is even the possibility of marijuana protecting individuals from psychosis - while users often have a higher proportion of neurotic or personality disorder patients compared to the general population, they do not necessarily experience an increased incidence of psychoses. Thus, for some people coping with mental health issues, marijuana may aid in preventing psychotic breakdowns. Mikuriya's paper titled "Marijuana in Medicine: Past, Present and Future" discusses numerous therapeutic uses for THC and related products.

The author lists a variety of uses for the substance, which include acting as an analgesic-hypnotic, appetite stimulant, antiepileptic, antispasmodic, prophylactic and treatment for neuralgias (including migraine and tic douloureaux), antidepressant-tranquillizer, anti-asthmatic, oxytocic, anti-tussive, topical anesthetic, agent for opiate and alcohol addiction withdrawal, child birth analgesic, and antibiotic (1968: 39).