Mommy Lobby Fights To Legalize Medical Marijuana

Never underestimate the power of a mother. Back in the 70’s mothers weren’t really that supportive of marijuana, albeit for recreational or medical purposes. To be fair, back in those days, marijuana wasn’t viewed as a medical aid either and countless testimonials weren’t really available at your fingertips. Naturally, since there were no widespread stories on the effectiveness of medical marijuana, all parents could do is classify marijuana as a recreational drug that would be an excellent addition to hippy gatherings. However, today, in the age of new media, those testimonials are proving to be really hard to ignore as YouTube, Facebook and twitter are becoming flooded with them. In fact, the testimonials have now become facts strong enough to introduce bipartisan bills that would allow mothers of severely sick children to administer marijuana in the form of cannabis oil. This “mommy lobby”, as journalists are calling it, consist of mothers that are sick and tired of treating their children with pharmaceutical drugs that do more harm than good.

Children First

For instance, 6-year-old Lydia suffers from life-threatening seizures that occur almost on a daily basis. To be fair, modern medicine hasn’t really done much to relieve Lydia of her pain. Or perhaps, it has done too much by administering her with every possible pharmaceutical drug “designed” to treat her rare chromosomal disorder. The problem is: doctors can’t fix it and its time to look for alternative methods of treatment. Logically, medical marijuana is the first thing that comes to mind. Her mother literally begged the lawmakers in Wisconsin to introduce that bipartisan bill by posing them with a simple question: If it were your child, what would you do? We all know the answer to that is “everything” and that is why the bill was introduced. However, Wisconsin is not the only place in the U.S. where the mommy lobby is starting to make headway. Similar actions are being taken in Oklahoma, Utah, Georgia, Florida, New York, North Carolina, Alabama & Kentucky. Let us remind you that all these states are still not friendly towards medical marijuana but the mommy lobby is making sure that changes soon.

Mothers Are Crucial To Legalization

You have to admit that mothers have an important role on society’s behavior. Not only are they promoting legalization of medical marijuana at the moment this article is being written but they have also been adamant and decisive in almost any social deviation. For instance, “Mothers Against Drunk Driving” made a huge impact on our “drink & drive” culture and have gathered enormous public support mostly because they are trying to save their own children from doing something as irresponsible as driving under the influence. The fact is, mothers are one of the strongest constituent groups in the U.S. and when they set a goal for themselves, they seem to be highly efficient in reaching it.

Even though medical marijuana is now legal in 20 states, the rest of them are still dwelling on the matter or merely considering it. However, mothers might have it easier today than they did before because for the first time ever, the majority of Americans now support complete legalization of marijuana. Two pioneering shining examples are most definitely Colorado and Washington. It was important for them to get it right and now when they finally did, they can serve as an example to all other states that are thinking about legalizing marijuana for either medical or recreational purposes. In fact, even the conservative South is starting to be more lenient towards medical marijuana, which comes of as a surprise, to say the least. However, the states that have legalized medical marijuana also contributed a list of diseases that marijuana could be prescribed for. Needless to say, the list of those conditions is very limited and sometimes presents just another obstacle in obtaining the drug. That’s why a lot of states require two prescription from two separate doctors, which is not necessarily a bad thing but it does extend the entire process, most of the time at the expense of the child suffering from a serious condition. So, even if the states do allow consumption of medical marijuana, convincing the doctors is an entirely different ballgame.

Cannabis Oil

You see, parents aren’t seeking for the best bud in town so they could administer it to their children. They are specifically looking for an extract derived from the plant and which goes by the name “cannabis oil”. That’s where all those testimonials come from and that’s what’s responsible for such a high approval rate among the American public. Cannabis oil is known for being low in THC (the psychoactive compound of marijuana) but extremely high in CBD (the compound responsible for its therapeutic effect). Specifically, CBD can also tone down the electrical and chemical activity that can cause seizures in the brain. The oil obviously comes in liquid form but it tends to crystallize if left in contact with air for too long. That doesn’t mean it looses its therapeutic value but merely changes its aggregate form. You could smoke the oil if you rub it over a piece of paper, but its best administered to children via a dropper.

Effects of Marijuana on Children

Of course, various medical groups are not that fond of this idea, mostly because the effects of marijuana on really young children haven’t been studies and when it was, those studies were focused on teenagers and young adults. Those studies showed that anyone who frequently consumed marijuana before the age of 18, had problems later on, meaning that marijuana consumption lead to mental illness, thought disorders, anxiety, depression and even showed IQ diminishing over time, which is a bit scary. However, those studies are scarce, samples tend to be quite small and IQ diminishing over time is almost a natural occurrence. Of course, most doctors would advise against it, but be honest, if it was your kid, what would you do?

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