norml09 - Page 16
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Third, any mind-altering drug that produces euphoria
can make a sick person think he feels better. Stories from
patients who claim marijuana helps them may be the result of
the mind-altering effects of the drug, not the results of
improvements in their conditions_
Fourth, long-time abusers of marijuana are not immune
to illness. Many eventually get cancer_ glaucoma, MS and
other diseases° People who become dependent on mind-
altering drugs tend to rationalize "their behavior° They
invent excuses: which they can come to believe, to justify
their drug dependance. Stories of marijuana's benefits from
sick people with a prior history of marijuana abuse may be
based on rationalizations caused by drug dependence, not on
any medical benefits caused by the drug. Robert Randall,
for exampie_ admits under oath to becoming a regular
marijuana user in 1968_ four years before he showed the
first signs oft and was diagnosed as having, glaucomas
Since then he has smoked marijuana 8 to l0 times every day.
A century ago many Americans relied on stories to pick
their medicines_ especially from snake oil salesmen. Thanks
to scientific advances and to the passage of the Federal
Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) in 1906, 21 U.S.C_ 301 e t
_qo, we now rely on rigorous scientific proof to assure the
safety and effectiveness of new drugs. Mere stories are not
considered an acceptable way to judge whether dangerous
drugs should be used as medicines.
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