After watching a particularly moving video about a young boy whose life was drastically improved after starting to treat his Epilepsy with medical marijuana, I started to wonder why more states have not legalized marijuana for medicinal use. There is definitely a negative stigma associated with marijuana due to its illegal recreational use, and the fact that people often abuse the drug. In reality, marijuana has been used as a medicine since 2737 BC, and therefore should be treated as a medication and not like a criminal drug.

First of all, it is important to know how medical marijuana works before making an opinion about the drug. Medical marijuana is primarily used for the chemical Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), a type of cannabinoid. THC activates the cannabinoid receptor found in our brains that helps reduce pain. Other chemicals found in marijuana include Cannabidiol (CBD) which reduces inflammation, convulsions, anxiety, nausea, and much more, and Cannabinol (CBN) which helps fight the spread of cancer cells.

Medical marijuana has a lot of potential uses. These uses include:

- Gastrointestinal diseases such as Crohn's

- Reducing eye pressure in diseases like Glaucoma

- Easing chronic pain/arthritis and neuropathic pain

- Creating an appetite in patients who have diseases like HIV/AIDS and cancer

- Eliminating feelings of nausea and vomiting, particularly in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy

- Reducing symptoms in anxiety disorders, psychosis, schizophrenia, asthma, Alzheimer's disease, breast cancer, brain cancer, Lou Gehrig's Disease, and insomnia

No medication is perfect though, and naturally, there are negative side effects associated with medical marijuana. Chemicals in marijuana can react with cannabinoid receptors in the brain which can negatively effect attention, balance, and judgement. In some studies, medical marijuana has made anxiety and psychosis symptoms worse, and some studies have linked marijuana to cancer, but there are just as many studies to disprove this too.

Side effects and myths make many people question if medical marijuana is really more helpful than harmful.

- Many people believe that using medical marijuana will make the patient "stoned" all the time. However, there is no proof that this is true, as medical marijuana does not target the receptors in the brain that create a "stoned" feeling. Many patients and caregivers even testify that marijuana leaves them feeling less "stoned" than the pharmaceuticals they previously took.

- People also wonder if marijuana is addictive. This has not been proven. Our bodies produce a painkiller called cannabinoid, and marijuana also has cannabinoids in it too, so marijuana works naturally with our bodies. The only cases where marijuana has been found addictive is when it is laced with harder drugs, which can occur when marijuana is bought illegally off the streets.

- Stereotypically, marijuana is something that is only smoked, and smoking is something that many people disapprove of. While medical marijuana can be administered by smoking it, it can also be taken with in the form of pills, oils/balms, as an inhaler, or baked with food like cookies and brownies and eaten.

One of the biggest arguments critics have about medical marijuana is that it will be abused. This is something no one can guarantee, and can be difficult to prevent. While a person needs to see a doctor in order to decide if medical marijuana is necessary, there will be a few people that will sneak through the cracks and obtain a medical card even if they do not need it. However, if we can change our mindset and see marijuana as more of a medical drug than a recreational drug, we can eliminate the desire to use marijuana recreationally, especially in our future children. People can take cough syrup to get drunk. Do some people do it? Absolutely. Do most people buy it with the intentions of getting drunk? No, they buy it to eliminate coughing. Just because very few individuals abuse a helpful medication like cough syrup, we still use it because it is so beneficial. Marijuana is like cough syrup in that manner, and if we desensitize it, then it will not be as heavily misused in the future.

In order to receive a medical card for marijuana, and individual must be recommended for it by a doctor, and pay a small fee for the card. People under the age of 18 cannot receive a medical card, but their caregiver or a parent can get one for their use. I think this is fair. In order to try and avoid drug abuse, a doctor does need to deem a person worthy of taking any potentially dangerous prescription, and marijuana should be treated as such. While there is a fee for a medical card, it is less than $300. Most people do not have $300 laying around, but in most cases the money spent on the card is worth the cost.

Despite all of this, only 25 states and the District of Columbia have approved marijuana for medicinal use (as of early June 2016). In some states such as California, marijuana can be used to treat any symptom it eliminates, while in some states like New York, marijuana can be used only for a few illnesses. 82% of Americans approve of the legalization of medical marijuana, and yet over half of our country's courts view marijuana as a criminal drug. In my opinion, medical marijuana is far too valuable to be treated as a criminal drug. It's benefits far outweigh its negatives, and by keeping marijuana illegal, we are denying sick people a drug that can make them feel healthier by eliminating their symptoms, no longer holding them prisoners to their illnesses.

So what can you do? Write to your governor, congressman, etc. and lobby for the legalization of medical marijuana. Promote the education about medical marijuana in order to eliminate myths associated with it and help others understand how it works. More and more states are legalizing medical marijuana why wait when there are so many benefits of using it?