FEDERAL STUDY SAYS POT HAS MEDICAL VALUE

A LONG-AWAITED report on the medical usefulness of marijuana released
yesterday said the active ingredients in pot can help ease pain and
nausea, and further scientific research is warranted.

The National Academy of Science's Institute of Medicine stopped well
short of endorsing pot, but it took a scientific look at the evidence
and urged clinical trials to determine its medical worth.

After an 18-month review of the scientific literature on marijuana,
the federal commission said pot is a powerful drug that has potential
as medicine, but its value is limited by the harmful effects of
smoking, which can cause cancer, lung damage and problem
pregnancies.

``Beyond the harmful effects from smoking, however, the range of
problems associated with marijuana is not out of line with those of
substances used in other medicines,'' said the report commissioned by
the White House drug policy office.

The report also says there is no conclusive evidence that pot leads to
harder drugs.

For years advocates of medical pot have argued for marijuana as an
effective folk medicine for an array of medical conditions, including
cancer, AIDS, migraine headaches, epilepsy, asthma and chronic pain.

Such prestigious scientific journals as Lancet, New Scientist and the
New England Journal of Medicine have editorialized about the strong
evidence that marijuana works.

In short, the new government report supports many claims of medical
marijuana advocates and argues against prohibitionists who oppose any
use of pot because it is a gateway drug to harder stuff.

Since California became the first state to legalize pot for medical
use in 1996 with Proposition 215, voters passed similar measures in
Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada and Washington.

For all its reputed benefits, marijuana is a potent intoxicant and
should not be used for recreation. The same can be said of morphine,
Valium and a hundred other drugs available with a doctor's
prescription.

The Institute of Medicine report made it clear that marijuana has
medical value. Now the federal government should put politics aside
and sponsor serious scientific research into pot's potential.

Meanwhile, California should find a way to distribute medical
marijuana to patients whose doctors recommend it, the way Proposition
215 originally intended.