Marijuana Use Argumentative Essay

The issue to be discussed in this essay is whether or not marijuana use should be acceptable. In most countries marijuana is considered one of the drugs, prohibited by the law. Though some changes in legislation of some countries (like the Czech Republic) have recently been introduced, people using marijuana for any purpose are still prosecuted and arrested in most parts of the world. However, it should be taken into account that according to most recent researchers marijuana does not seem to be a harmful drug in comparison with such popular drugs as cocaine or crystal meth. In other words, it has not been proven by research that marijuana addiction really exists. At the same time many people use marijuana for medicinal purposes, where no natural substitute has ever been yet discovered. In this paper the advantages of using marijuana for cancer and chemotherapy patients are discussed. Special attention is paid to the possible negative effect, which marijuana may cause.
Firstly, it has been well known practice since the ancient times until the twentieth century to use marijuana for pain relief. With the prohibition of marijuana use in the 1940’s the chemical analogues were most commonly used, causing more harm than good, for most chemical drugs put the patient’s organism under stress, thus harming the immunity system and destroying the viscera. However, the use of marijuana for the same purpose allows the patients to reach the same results, without any harmful effects. The only consequence which may be considered as negative is the euphoria or the so-called “keef”. Still it does not have any negative influence on the healthiness of the marijuana users, both mental and physical (as it has been proven by many researches).
Secondly, one of the well-known marijuana effects is that it evokes appetite. This feature is commonly used for nursing cancer and chemotherapy patients, which often suffer from lack of appetite and thus inability to eat enough food to support the organism in terms of the high need for healthy diet. In this connection marijuana use gives the patients an opportunity to be able to stay in good shape or regain weigh, which is especially important for those people, who were recently operated on and whose immunity system is at high danger. Such patients require careful nursing and in most cases cannot afford to turn to chemical appetite stimulators, since the latter ones are rejected by the weakened organism. As a result marijuana is practically the only stimulator, which the cancer patients can use, as it is natural and does not harm the smokers.
Thirdly, many people claim, that marijuana, due to its euphoria effects, has huge influence on the mental health and harms the central nervous system. It was actually the fact that marijuana was used as a drug by the public, due to which it was considered as illegal. However, practically all researches, which have been carried out, said that either marijuana use does not have any long-lasting negative effects on the mental health of the users or such effects are observed, but may be caused by other factors, which marijuana has nothing to do with. It is absolutely clear that marijuana does not provoke addiction, which is an integral part of the other drugs’ effects. Furthermore, not all sorts of marijuana have the high euphoria effect, as there are special medicinal strains, which are bred for the purpose of medicinal use with low levels of “keef” effect. This means that marijuana use should not be prohibited for all citizens, though it is of course essential to control the drug traffic.
In conclusion, it should be outlined that although marijuana is considered as a drug in most countries, it still has certain positive effects, which outweigh the possible negative ones. Therefore, it would be reasonable to allow certain people, who actually require it, to use marijuana for medicinal purposes. It goes without saying that many people turn to marijuana as it is the only means of reducing pain or stimulating appetite, thus actually staying alive. Such people, when caught, are accused of being drug addicts and sentenced to jail like murderers or robbers. It would be much better to allow them legally use marijuana, than keep prosecuting them. It is, however, the authorities’ duty to control the use of marijuana and perhaps appoint certain patient groups, which are entitled to use marijuana, as well as the marijuana strains, which the patients may receive as a medicine.