Medical Marijuana, Patient Safety, and the Question Modern Medicine Avoids
Medical Marijuana, Patient Safety, and the Question Modern Medicine Avoids By James Byrd, MBA Medical marijuana continues to sit at the intersection of patient demand, regulatory caution, and institutional control. While debate often centers on legality or psychoactivity , a more fundamental issue deserves attention: how cannabis is delivered to patients—and whether current practices truly prioritize patient safety . Whole-Plant Medicine vs. Pharmaceutical Standards Cannabis is a complex botanical medicine containing cannabinoids , terpenes , and flavonoids that interact with the human endocannabinoid system . Research increasingly supports the idea that these compounds may work synergistically, often referred to as the “entourage effect” (Russo, 2011). By contrast, pharmaceutical medicine prioritizes isolated compounds, standardized dosing, and predictability. While this model excels in many areas, it is less suited to therapies derived from biologically complex plants . When ...
.jpg)
%20(2).png)
