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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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Cannabis cushion for disability
Press & Journal. Aberdeen, UK Saturday 25 Oct 1997 cannabis with their Doctors' approval, a study revealed today. The survey found 195 of the 200 disabled people questioned believe cannabis should be legalised. Almost 70% said they had taken the drug. Of those, 39% were men and 61% were women. A quarter said their doctors knew and approved of their using the class B drug, according to a survey in the journal 'Disability Now'. The people most likely to use cannabis were those with Multiple Sclerosis or spinal injuries or diseases according to the study. One respondent said: "It helps take my mind off the pain, I have less spasms in my spine and it helps me breath easier. It also helps me relax a little." Another said: "Cannabis is essential when everything else has failed, including physiotherapy, pain-relief machines and drugs." The Journal decided to carry out the survey after the issue of using cannabis for medicinal purposes was raised at the British Medical Association annual conference earlier this year. Editor Mary Wilkinson said: "This is a real issue that needs to be taken seriously. Our survey found there are a lot of people who use or have used cannabis." Earlier this month, Health Secretary Frank Dobson revealed he was considering making cannabis available on medical grounds for sufferers of multiple sclerosis. He told a television programme: "I am prepared to look at cannabis for medicinal purposes." However, he emphasised that cannabis should not be legalised, because more people would smoke it and their health would suffer. A pole carried out on the programme asking whether there should be a Royal Commission into the drugs issue revealed the majority of people -- 57% -- were in favour.
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