At first, he finds it funny and considered medical marijuana a joke. But then Dr. David Casarett, a palliative care specialist, starts looking at it more seriously and his perspective change.
While doing research for his new book “Stoned: A Doctor’s Case for Medical Marijuana”, Casarett had come to recognize the medical benefits of marijuana and realized that it is a treatment that many patients can depend on.
Casarett pondered on the limited research on cannabis, went to places where it is legally used and spoke to patients who use pot for a number of ailments, including PTSD, seizures and neuropathic pain. He even tested it on himself.
The book outlines marijuana’s medicinal use as well as the necessity for more research into the drug’s long-term effects. “There’s a fair amount of science behind it,” Casarett says, and the medical benefits it brings to people must be taken seriously.