Cannabis Versus Aspirin

Using cannabis is illegal in many jurisdictions as part of the War on Drugs that politicians use as a reason to spend billions while thousands are in prison. Are the claims about the ill effects well founded? Or are they based on prejudice? Policy makers should know but they seem to be the pawns of special interests. Parents want to know too. This source seems reasonable. They quote Professor Iversen,  an eminent man in the field, who is according to Forbes, a credible source. His book is available from Amazon and favourably reviewed by Nature, a respectable magazine. The evidence is about as good as it gets. But read for yourself, think for yourself, decide for yourself.
PS This may no longer be true. Experimenters have bred new strains which are much stronger - see New Method Produces Super Potent Pot

Marijuana Is Safer Than Aspirin
QUOTE
When Bayer introduced aspirin in 1899, cannabis was America’s number one painkiller. Until marijuana prohibition began in 1937, the US Pharmacopoeia listed cannabis as the primary medicine for over 100 diseases. Cannabis was such an effective analgesic that the American Medical Association (AMA) argued against prohibition on behalf of medical progress. Since the herb is extremely potent and essentially non-toxic, the AMA considered it a potential wonder drug.

Instead, the invention of aspirin gave birth to the modern pharmaceutical industry and Americans switched away from cannabis in the name of “progress.” But was it really progress? There can be no doubt that aspirin has a long history as the drug of choice for the self-treatment of migraines, arthritis, and other chronic pain. It is cheap and effective. But is it as safe as cannabis?

History:

• Marijuana has been used for over 5,000 years.

• No one has ever overdosed on marijuana.

• Aspirin has been used for 108 years.

• Approximately 500 people die every year by taking aspirin

The Law:

• Marijuana is a Schedule 1 drug, meaning the US government believes it is extremely dangerous, highly addictive, and of no medical value.

• Aspirin is available for pennies and can be purchased by children at any drug, grocery, or convenience store. Often they are just handed out free by people with no medical education.

Marijuana side effects and dangers:

• The dangers of marijuana include possible respiratory problems caused by the deposition of burnt plant material on the lungs. This danger can be eliminated with alternate forms of consumption such as eating or vaporizing the medicine.

• For two to four hours, marijuana causes short-term memory loss, a slight reduction in reaction time, and a reduction in cognitive ability. (It makes you stupid for a little while.) These conditions DO NOT persist after the herb wears off.
   

• Hunger

• Paranoia

• Depression

• Laughter

• Introspection

• Creative Impulse

• Euphoria

• Tiredness

• Forgetfulness

Aspirin side effects and dangers:

• When taken with alcohol, aspirin can cause stomach bleeding.

• Reye Syndrome in children: fat begins to develop around the liver and other organs of the child, eventually putting severe pressure on the brain. Death is common within a few days.

• People with hemophilia can die.

• People with hyperthyroidism suffer elevated T4 levels.

• Stomach problems include dyspepsia, heartburn, upset stomach, stomach ulcers with gross bleeding, and internal bleeding leading to anemia.

• Dizziness, ringing in the ears, hearing loss, vertigo, vision disturbances, and headaches.

• Heavy sweating

• Irreversible liver damage

• Inflamation and gradual destruction of the kidneys

• Nausea and vomiting

• Abdominal pain

• Lethargy

• Hyperthermia

• Dyspepsia: a gnawing or burning stomach pain accompanied by bloating, heartburn, nausea, vomiting and burping.

• Tachypnea: Abnormally fast breathing

• Respiratory Alkalosis: a condition where the amount of carbon dioxide found in the blood drops to a level below normal range brought on by abnormally fast breathing.

• Cerebral Edema: Water accumulates on the brain. Symptoms include headaches, decreased level of consciousness, loss of eyesight, hallucinations, psychotic behavior, memory loss and coma. If left untreated, it can lead to death.

• Hallucinations, confusion, and seizure.

• Prolonged bleeding after operations or post-trauma for up to 10 days after last aspirin.

• Aspirin can interact with some other drugs, such as diabetes medication. Aspirin changes the way the body handles these drugs and can lead to a drug overdose and death.

If you think that cannabis is actually safer than aspirin, you are not alone. In October 2000, Dr. Leslie Iversen of the Oxford University Department of Pharmacology said the same thing.

In her book, ‘The Science of Marijuana,’ Dr. Iversen presents the scientific evidence that cannabis is, by-and-large, a safe drug. Dr. Iversen found cannabis had “an impressive record” when compared to tobacco, alcohol, or even aspirin.

“Tetrahydrocannabinol is a very safe drug,” she said. “Even such apparently innocuous medicines as aspirin and related steroidal anti-inflammatory compounds are not safe.”

So if safety is your concern, cannabis is clearly a much better choice than aspirin. If you eat it or vaporize it, it just might be the safest painkiller the world has ever known.

 

Dependence: How difficult it is for the user to quit, the relapse rate, the percentage of people who eventually become dependent, the rating users give their own need for the substance and the degree to which the substance will be used in the face of evidence that it causes harm.

Withdrawal: Presence and severity of characteristic withdrawal symptoms.

Tolerance: How much of the substance is needed to satisfy increasing cravings for it, and the level of stable need that is eventually reached.

Reinforcement: A measure of the substance’s ability, in human and animal tests, to get users to take it again and again, and in preference to other substances.

Intoxication: Though not usually counted as a measure of addiction in itself, the level of intoxication is associated with addiction and increases the personal and social damage a substance may do.

This chart originally appeared on DrugWarFacts.org.

I tracked it down at SaferChoice.org. 
UNQUOTE
Professor Iversen seems to be a him rather than a her but seriously eminent in his field.

 

The Science of Marijuana by Leslie L. Iversen
QUOTE
Product Description

Nature - Peering Through The Smoke September 7, 2000
...an excellent, well-balanced, non-specialist book covering both the biological and social aspects of cannabis. I strongly recommend it.

Product Description
After alcohol and nicotine, marijuana is the most commonly used "recreational" drug in Western countries, though official positions among different countries vary widely. A debate about the medical applications of marijuana and other cannabis-based preparations has been brewing for years, and pressure to legalise such use continues to increase. In The Science of Marijuana Iversen explains the remarkable advances that have been made in scientific research on cannabis with the discovery of specific receptors and the existence of naturally occurring cannabis-like substances in the brain. Iversen provides an objective and up-to-date assessment of the scientific basis for the medical use of cannabis and what risks this may entail. The recreational use of the drug and how it affects users is described along with some predictions about how attitudes to cannabis may change in the future. 
UNQUOTE
Amazon's sources approve.

 

Leslie L. Iversen Profile - Forbes.com
QUOTE
Leslie L. Iversen Chairman of the Board/Director ACADIA Pharmaceuticals, Incorporated
San Diego
Sector: HEALTHCARE  /  Biotechnology
Leslie L. Iversen, Ph.D. has been the Chairman of our Board of Directors since December 2000. He has served as a director since 1998. He also was a founding member of our Scientific Advisory Board. Dr. Iversen is currently a Professor of Pharmacology at University of Oxford, England, where he has taught since 1995. He was previously a Professor of Pharmacology at King's College, London where he was Director of the Wolfson Centre for Age Related Diseases from 1999 until 2004. Dr. Iversen is internationally recognized for his fundamental contributions to the understanding of neurotransmission. Dr. Iversen served as Vice President of Neuroscience Research, Merck Research Laboratories and Director of the Neuroscience Research Center of Merck Research Laboratories in the UK. He was formerly Director of the Medical Research Council Neurochemical Pharmacology Unit in Cambridge. More recently, Dr. Iversen founded and serves as a director of Panos Therapeutics Ltd. Dr. Iversen is the recipient of numerous awards, including Fellow of the Royal Society of London and Foreign Associate Member of the National Academy of Sciences in the United States. Dr. Iversen received a Ph.D. and B.A. from the University of Cambridge.  
UNQUOTE
This little biography summarizes a life's work of some one eminent in his field.

 

Nature - Peering Through The Smoke
QUOTE
Peering through the smoke
Raphael Mechoulam

CONTEXT: ...a “new look” at the field is bound to be premature. Two years ago, Oxford University Press published The Science of Marijuana by Leslie Iversen (for a review, see Nature 407, 18–19; 2000), an excellent book in which the emphasis is...
Nature 419, 670 - 671 (17 Oct 2002), doi: 10.1038/419670a, Book Review

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UNQUOTE
The full article can be yours for $32. I resisted the temptation. They seem to approve of the good prof.