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| Marijuana and AIDS | HIV Positive |
Wasting syndrome is a main
result of AIDS patients in where body mass is reduced. This is from
symptoms of nausea, appetite loss, pain and anxiety. AIDS drugs on
the market currently are used to treat these problems. Patients have
demonstrated that these medications are not equally effective in all
patients. Many AIDS sufferers describe marijuana as being a better
choice than prescribed medication. The main reasons for choosing
marijuana is the rapid-onset when smoked which helps in relief with
less side effects.(
Source)
Pain management contributes
to fatigue and mood for HIV patients. A study done published in the
2007 journal Neurology studied cannabis and pain of HIV-associated
sensory neuropathy. Donald I. Abrams, MD, Professor of Clinical
Medicine at the University of California at San Francisco concluded
that cannabis was as effective as other oral drugs used for chronic
neuropathic pain.(
Source)
Ways of Administering
Cannabis
Some HIV patients are
given Dronabinol which is a synthetic THC over the counter drug.
Margaret Haney's research in “Dronabinol and Marijuana in
HIV-Positive Marijuana Smokers: Caloric Intake, Mood, and Sleep”
studied the effect of Dronabinol. Her findings concluded that both
Dronabinol and Marijuana smoking increased appetite and body weight.
She also found that only marijuana improved sleep and Dronabinol was
effective only at 8 times the current recommendation.(
Source)
Major Supporters of
Cannabis Treatment for AIDS
Cannabis being a benefit
for treatment to HIV is backed by large supporters. The American
Academy of HIV Medicine is the largest independent organization
giving active treatment to 340,000 HIV patients. They Provide care
for more than two-thirds of HIV patients of America. They were asked,
“Should marijuana be a medical option?” by Reason Magazine in
2007. Their response was “ When appropriately prescribed and
monitored, marijuana/cannabis can provide immeasurable benefits for
the health and well-being of our patients.”(
Source)
Other supporters have
weighed in on the support of marijuana for AIDS patients. Consumer
Reports in May 1997 stated,
“Consumer Reports believes that, for patients with advanced AIDS
and terminal cancer, the apparent benefits some derive from smoking
marijuana outweigh any substantiated or even suspected risks."
Kate Scannell, MD and Co-Director of Kaiser-Permanente Northern
California Ethics Department stated in the San Fransisco Chronicle in
2003, "From working with AIDS and cancer patients, I repeatedly
saw how marijuana could ameliorate a patient's debilitating fatigue,
restore appetite, diminish pain, remedy nausea, cure vomiting and
curtail down-to-the-bone weight loss."
Source:
http://www.neurology.org/content/68/7/515.abstract
