Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
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.
We love our pills. North America has the world’s highest consumption of prescription opioids, such as OxyContin, and we’re gobbling them up faster than ever.
Nevertheless, there are six million Canadians suffering from chronic pain who aren’t being treated properly, says Dr. Mary Lynch, president of the Canadian Pain Society.
Many doctors aren’t knowledgeable about managing the complexities of chronic pain and patients are often reluctant to ask for medication because of the fear of addiction to powerful opioids, she says.
Yet another study has emerged, however, that demonstrates that pot can be an effective pain reliever.
Patients who inhaled pot once three times a day for five days reported less pain, improved mood and better sleep, according to the study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ).
The study participants all suffered from nerve pain related to traffic accidents or surgery. Conventional medications had failed them. And, no surprise, there were no terrible side-effects.
This was, after all, marijuana, not some seriously addictive prescription drug.
As it happens, thousands of delegates are in Montreal this week for the 13th World Congress on Pain to discuss best treatment practices for what they pointedly describe as a “throbbing” public health issue.
A recent national survey revealed 85% of Canadian adults have suffered from acute or chronic pain within the last three months.
So Lynch is delighted about the latest study on the medical use of pot. “I’m not surprised to learn that cannabis has an analgesic effect in a controlled trial because it’s certainly consistent with other evidence that’s already out there,” she says.
“We need more (pot) studies and we need longer studies to add to the literature.”
Existing treatments for serious pain “are far from perfect,” according to a companion commentary to the main CMAJ study, noting that the regulatory hurdles for the trial must have been a nightmare.
“If patients are not achieving a good response with conventional treatment of their pain,” writes U.K. physician Dr. Henry McQuay, “then they may, reasonably, wish to try cannabis.” For some, however, that will mean breaking the law, he adds.
Meanwhile, as the federal government ramps up the war on pot, consider a 2009 study comparing the risks of harm and costs to society of pot, tobacco and booze.
In Canada, more than 21 million low- to moderate-risk drinkers account for 40% to 60% of alcohol-related health and social harms, according to the report by B.C.’s Mental Health and Addictions Journal.
Tobacco-related health costs work out to $800 per user and booze-related health costs add up to $165 per user. Pot-related health costs? A mere $20 per toker.
Why, again, are we spending tens of millions of dollars waging a war on a drug that’s relatively harmless? Where are our priorities?
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: edmontonsun.com
Author: MINDELLE JACOBS
Copyright: 2010 Edmonton Sun
Contact: Contact Us | Edmonton Sun
Website: Our drug priorities need to change | Mindelle Jacobs | Columnists | Comment | Edmonton Sun
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.
We love our pills. North America has the world’s highest consumption of prescription opioids, such as OxyContin, and we’re gobbling them up faster than ever.
Nevertheless, there are six million Canadians suffering from chronic pain who aren’t being treated properly, says Dr. Mary Lynch, president of the Canadian Pain Society.
Many doctors aren’t knowledgeable about managing the complexities of chronic pain and patients are often reluctant to ask for medication because of the fear of addiction to powerful opioids, she says.
Yet another study has emerged, however, that demonstrates that pot can be an effective pain reliever.
Patients who inhaled pot once three times a day for five days reported less pain, improved mood and better sleep, according to the study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ).
The study participants all suffered from nerve pain related to traffic accidents or surgery. Conventional medications had failed them. And, no surprise, there were no terrible side-effects.
This was, after all, marijuana, not some seriously addictive prescription drug.
As it happens, thousands of delegates are in Montreal this week for the 13th World Congress on Pain to discuss best treatment practices for what they pointedly describe as a “throbbing” public health issue.
A recent national survey revealed 85% of Canadian adults have suffered from acute or chronic pain within the last three months.
So Lynch is delighted about the latest study on the medical use of pot. “I’m not surprised to learn that cannabis has an analgesic effect in a controlled trial because it’s certainly consistent with other evidence that’s already out there,” she says.
“We need more (pot) studies and we need longer studies to add to the literature.”
Existing treatments for serious pain “are far from perfect,” according to a companion commentary to the main CMAJ study, noting that the regulatory hurdles for the trial must have been a nightmare.
“If patients are not achieving a good response with conventional treatment of their pain,” writes U.K. physician Dr. Henry McQuay, “then they may, reasonably, wish to try cannabis.” For some, however, that will mean breaking the law, he adds.
Meanwhile, as the federal government ramps up the war on pot, consider a 2009 study comparing the risks of harm and costs to society of pot, tobacco and booze.
In Canada, more than 21 million low- to moderate-risk drinkers account for 40% to 60% of alcohol-related health and social harms, according to the report by B.C.’s Mental Health and Addictions Journal.
Tobacco-related health costs work out to $800 per user and booze-related health costs add up to $165 per user. Pot-related health costs? A mere $20 per toker.
Why, again, are we spending tens of millions of dollars waging a war on a drug that’s relatively harmless? Where are our priorities?
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: edmontonsun.com
Author: MINDELLE JACOBS
Copyright: 2010 Edmonton Sun
Contact: Contact Us | Edmonton Sun
Website: Our drug priorities need to change | Mindelle Jacobs | Columnists | Comment | Edmonton Sun
