VAPORIZER TAKES DANGER OUT OF MARIJUANA USE

Thanks for the recent story "1 joint equals up to 5 cigarettes." It's
interesting to note that smoking marijuana does not increase
emphysema, but does increase respiratory symptoms like coughing and
wheezing. Fortunately, these symptoms can be sidestepped with the
vaporizer, a new gizmo that heats cannabis until active components
are released in a fine mist. The cannabis never ignites. No fire
means no gaseous toxins or noxious tars.

Dr. Donald Abrams at San Francisco General Hospital recently
published research showing that vaporizer users are not exposed to
toxic gases. Data from my laboratory in Albany revealed that users
who vaporize are significantly less likely to report respiratory
symptoms of any kind.

As the call for legal access to medical marijuana becomes louder and
louder in New York, it's nice to know that this medicine can be
available to the sickest of the sick without endangering their lungs.

MITCH EARLEYWINE, Ph.D. Associate Professor Psychology Unive