Marihuana, the Forbidden Medicine [Hardcover]

Lester Grinspoon (Author), James B. Bakalar (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1993

For many centuries patients and physicians have found marihuana to be a highly effective medicine. This drug, outlawed for more than 50 years in the United States, provides relief from nausea, pain and muscle spasms, and alleviates symptoms of glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, AIDS, migraine, and other debilitating ailments. Yet the US government grants only 12 patients in the entire country the right to use marihuana medically, and permits even that with great reluctance. In this book, Dr. Lester Grinspoon and James B. Bakalar draw on 20 years of research to describe the medical benefits of marihuana, explain why it has been forbidden, and argue that full legalization is necessary to make it available to all patients who need it. Much of the book consists of accounts written by patients (including one from famed scientist Stephen Jay Gould) that dramatically illustrate not only the relief provided by marihuana but also the unneccessary distress caused by the need to obtain it illegally. Grinspoon and Bakalar recount the long history of medical marihuana use, discuss the real (as opposed to fancied) potential health hazards of the drug, and analyze the social causes of the government's insistence on making outlaws of its medical users. They find that marihuana is a remarkably safe substance and that criminalizing its use is costly, ineffective and unfair. They conclude that legalizing it for medical purposes alone would be unworkable and that it must be given the same status as alcohol-legal, with appropriate limitations, for use by adults for any purpose.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Grinspoon and Bakalar have compiled testimonials on the medicinal uses of marihuana for a variety of medical problems, including glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, and the nausea and vomiting associated with cancer chemotherapy. These accounts dramatically illustrate marihuana's potential to alleviate suffering when traditionally prescribed medications have proved ineffective, but they also illustrate the great stress placed on these individuals and their families by using an illegal substance. Many people don't know how to obtain marihuana, can't afford it, and are fearful and resentful of being considered criminal for using it. The authors discuss social attitudes towards marihuana and the reasons why the drug was outlawed. They argue that making marihuana available on a prescription basis is unworkable and that its legalization is necessary to make it available to those who need it. Recommended for public and academic libraries.
- Kathleen McQuiston, Philadelphia Coll. of Pharmacy and Science
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Yale Univ Pr (May 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300054351
• ISBN-13: 978-0300054354
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #765,598 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Whether you smoke or not, know the facts and myths., January 13, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Nee England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Marihuana: The Forbidden Medicine (Paperback)

During a Drugs and Society class at Northeastern University, my professor recommended this book as extra reading. The book ends all myths and disputes in regards to marijuana, and raises some serious questions about America's drug policies. Why would a substance that has been around before the age of men be illegal? It is because the synthetic drug manufactures cannot make any money off of it. What happened in 1937 that caused the U.S to condemn use of marijuana and prohibit it? Read the book, and then truly ask yourself how democratic the U.S really is.

30 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Most knowledgable literature on the subject ever., August 19, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Marihuana: The Forbidden Medicine (Paperback)

I bought the book 6 days ago in Amherst and I'm already finished it as it is brilliantly written as it taught me alot of things I needed to know. It wakes you up to the real facts of marijuana for medicine and as a medical marijuana user,I realized that everything in the book is facts and truth.The doctor who wrote it is pure genius and I hope he follows up with another book as he has made the most positive changes in my life. Thank You Dr.Lester Grinspoon

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I truly appreciate the heartfelt and, July 24, 1999

By 

Hopeful Mover "Reluctant opinionator" (Portland, OR USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Marihuana: The Forbidden Medicine (Paperback)

I truly appreciate the heartfelt anecdotal cases that he presents. He does not say anything that I can disagree with, it is not that kind of a book. His scholarly approch to what cases it has been found useful is helpful to me because I practice in a state where it is legal for medical use, and I knew almost nothing. Robert P. Doughton MD.