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I've been a chronic back pain sufferer off and on almost all my life. I've heard that medical marijuana can help someone like me. What can you tell me about this?

Marijuana is a drug but its use as herbal therapy for medical conditions is limited. A physician's prescription is required. And it is only legal in a few states in the U.S. Medical marijuana has been used to treat nausea, vomiting, and chronic pain. Research is ongoing into its use with glaucoma, atherosclerosis, migraines, loss of appetite, and addictions. Likewise, it is being investigated for patients with arthritis, panic disorder, insomnia, depression and other mood disorders, and muscle spasms, to name a few. Medications with properties similar to marijuana are available while others are in various stages of development. They have the distinct advantage of being ingested orally in pill form without the negative effects of smoking a chemical. The United States federal government does not currently recognize any legitimate medical use for marijuana. The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued an advisory against smoked medical marijuana. The FDA points out that the potential for abuse combined with the lack of supporting evidence makes this an unacceptable choice at this time. Safety and effectiveness have yet to be proven with this product. Likewise, there have been some studies that show smoking regular cigarette tobacco has some potential analgesic (pain relieving) properties. But the adverse side effects of smoking make this a less than optimal choice for pain control. There is still help for chronic pain sufferers. If you have not been evaluated at a pain clinic where pain management is a specialty practice, then that may be the place to start. A proper evaluation of your current health and pain status is needed to plan an appropriate program of intervention. Health care providers are much more tuned in now than ever before to patients' overall needs including physical, spiritual, emotional, and psychologic.

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