Spring Break
Editorial: Pot, the other opiate
Cari Wafford
Issue date: 6/11/09 Section: Opinions
Monday through Thursday I challenge my patience by forcing myself to sit through a two and a half hour lecture and lab combination. It is unbearable, and I am ecstatic I will never have to endure such a waste of time again.
But I digress. While my ranting seems unwarranted, it serves a purpose of alluding to something far more interesting than listening to me complain about getting a solid education.
One afternoon I happened to ease drop on a few classmates discussing their views on-what else-marijuana. One student claimed such a drug could do no harm, while the others bashed, maimed, and tore apart the one thing that seemed to make more sense than the class I was sitting in at the time.
Their views were, of course, one-sided, rehearsed and simply boring.
"Pot is bad," exclaimed one student while others thought up a scenario where pot and candy could be sold in the same store, giving the easy access of drugs to children. As if children have far worse things ahead of them than a little pot.
Being the enthusiast that I am, I decided to do a little research of my own and found a few pieces of information that may change the views of my narrow-minded classmates.
An upcoming edition of American Journal on Addictions found that herb, simply known as pot, could be beneficial in treating opiate addicts. Yes, your eyes didn't deceive you. When taken in conjunction with naltrexone, any junkie has a fighting chance to kick their heroin, Oxycontin or other opiate-esque addiction.
Previous naltrexone treatment has been mediocre at best, researchers say, because of " poor adherence" to the drug. The study found patients with "intermittent" use, 1 to 79 percent positive urine tests for marijuana, remained compliant with treatment almost four times as long as patients who refrained from smoking.
Researchers noted that early use of marijuana during treatment revealed that patients chose to stay in treatment longer. They also discovered the patients tended to maintain or increase their marijuana use, which they described as "a process of self-medication."
Researchers were most interested in these findings because it suggested moderate use could make naltrexone more tolerable with early induction to treatment.
If that information doesn't satisfy the naysayer, other research may cause a change of heart.
Guillermo Velasco and colleagues at Complutense University in Spain tested the effects of THC on brain tumors in both mice, designed to carry human brain cancer cells, and humans. The findings were included in the April 1 issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Velasco and his team discovered the mice tumors shrank when THC was administered. Two human patients with highly aggressive tumors were also enrolled in the study and given a direct dose of THC to their brains. Before and after comparisons of their biopsies showed a decrease in cancer cell multiplication.
To all the pessimists: put that in your pipe and smoke it, cure cancer and help heroine addicts gain a better lease on life.
Cari Wafford is a senior journalism major. She can be reached at DENopinoin@gmail or 581-7942.
But I digress. While my ranting seems unwarranted, it serves a purpose of alluding to something far more interesting than listening to me complain about getting a solid education.
One afternoon I happened to ease drop on a few classmates discussing their views on-what else-marijuana. One student claimed such a drug could do no harm, while the others bashed, maimed, and tore apart the one thing that seemed to make more sense than the class I was sitting in at the time.
Their views were, of course, one-sided, rehearsed and simply boring.
"Pot is bad," exclaimed one student while others thought up a scenario where pot and candy could be sold in the same store, giving the easy access of drugs to children. As if children have far worse things ahead of them than a little pot.
Being the enthusiast that I am, I decided to do a little research of my own and found a few pieces of information that may change the views of my narrow-minded classmates.
An upcoming edition of American Journal on Addictions found that herb, simply known as pot, could be beneficial in treating opiate addicts. Yes, your eyes didn't deceive you. When taken in conjunction with naltrexone, any junkie has a fighting chance to kick their heroin, Oxycontin or other opiate-esque addiction.
Previous naltrexone treatment has been mediocre at best, researchers say, because of " poor adherence" to the drug. The study found patients with "intermittent" use, 1 to 79 percent positive urine tests for marijuana, remained compliant with treatment almost four times as long as patients who refrained from smoking.
Researchers noted that early use of marijuana during treatment revealed that patients chose to stay in treatment longer. They also discovered the patients tended to maintain or increase their marijuana use, which they described as "a process of self-medication."
Researchers were most interested in these findings because it suggested moderate use could make naltrexone more tolerable with early induction to treatment.
If that information doesn't satisfy the naysayer, other research may cause a change of heart.
Guillermo Velasco and colleagues at Complutense University in Spain tested the effects of THC on brain tumors in both mice, designed to carry human brain cancer cells, and humans. The findings were included in the April 1 issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Velasco and his team discovered the mice tumors shrank when THC was administered. Two human patients with highly aggressive tumors were also enrolled in the study and given a direct dose of THC to their brains. Before and after comparisons of their biopsies showed a decrease in cancer cell multiplication.
To all the pessimists: put that in your pipe and smoke it, cure cancer and help heroine addicts gain a better lease on life.
Cari Wafford is a senior journalism major. She can be reached at DENopinoin@gmail or 581-7942.
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Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 10
Kelly
posted 6/11/09 @ 9:56 AM CST
EASE DROP? HEROINE? Does anybody copy edit this drivel?
No
posted 6/11/09 @ 10:56 AM CST
Did you check out that article about the second amendment? Each sentence was factually incorrect and incoherent.
Journalism major (unfortunately)
posted 6/11/09 @ 2:42 PM CST
This is consistent with journalism students. Everyday I sit in class listening to you whining little children talk like the world and everyone in it is so ignorant and less enlightened than you. (Continued…)
Kelly
posted 6/11/09 @ 4:37 PM CST
Then change your major. I'm an EIU journalism alum, and they do some damn good work. Haven't you noticed the trend that a LOT of college kids think they know all?
Lesko
posted 6/11/09 @ 9:35 PM CST
VERY nice read, Cari. Hopefully I'll find an article down the road with the a title similar to that of "Marijuana - the cure for piggy flu."
Hopefully. (Continued…)
But
posted 6/12/09 @ 5:40 PM CST
The difference between journalism majors and other majors is that journalism majors choose that major out of their confidence that their ill-thought-out views are correct. (Continued…)
Robert Rapplean
Robert Rapplean
posted 6/13/09 @ 12:28 PM CST
The difference between journalism majors and people who post anonymously is that the journalism majors put their name behind what they write, whereas the anonymous posters can toss vitriol at random without fear of reproach. (Continued…)
good job
posted 6/14/09 @ 8:13 PM CST
Good job at not addressing the argument at hand and instead throwing out a personal attack that doesn't discount anything I said.
Because someone puts their name behind something doesn't say anything about the argument itself. (Continued…)
Robert Rapplean
posted 6/14/09 @ 9:45 PM CST
"Good job at not addressing the argument at hand and instead throwing out a personal attack that doesn't discount anything I said."
Those seem to be the rules you're playing by, why would you expect something different of me?
Nope
posted 6/14/09 @ 10:38 PM CST
Actually, those weren't the rules I was playing by. I was responding to a comment in this thread. You are allowed to comment and critique on the article. (Continued…)
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