ANOTHER THING ON THE POT DEBATE

Dear Editor,

Contrary to Dr. John Krisinger?'s letter of Aug. 19, "Pot debate
lingers on," Sativex is a whole cannabis extract, or
"phytopharmaceutical," complete with all the cannabinoids, terpenoids
and flavinoids.

If fast food is addictive because it provides instant gratification,
without the effort of grocery shopping and cooking, then that would
explain why I appreciate my mother?s cooking so much.

Yes, modern pharmacology has a "long standing practice" of isolating
and synthesizing "predictable" and "safe" compounds from plants.
Heroin and cocaine spring to mind.

I am not an anti-pharmaceutical crusader. I owe my life to modern
medicine. However, I suspect that the debate over cannabis lingers on,
not so much because patients are merely seeking euphoria, but because
they are branded as criminals for choosing an herb over pharmaceutical
alternatives, many of which cause serious debilitating side-effects
and withdrawal symptoms.

Experienced medicinal cannabis users report that the first thing they
develop a tolerance for is the euphoria, or the "false sense of
well-being," as it is described on the list of possible side-effects
associated with the THC pill, Cessamet. Both cannabis and Sativex
users are known to titrate their dose to achieve symptomatic relief
without becoming dysfunctional.

Caffeine is a carcinogen, but coffee also contains several others,
created by the high heat of roasting, such as creosote, pymdine, tars
and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. The darker the roast, the
greater the hazard.

If we criminalized coffee drinkers on the grounds, (excuse the pun),
that there are safer and more predictable caffeine pills available,
would we be surprised or fault coffee drinkers for missing their
morning ritual and the flavour of French roast?

Matthew M. Elrod

Victoria, B.C.