Pubdate: Thu, 06 Mar 2008
Source: FFWD (CN AB)
Copyright: 2008 FFWD
Contact:  http://www.ffwdweekly.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1194
Author: Trevor Howell
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmjcn.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal - Canada)

SWEET LEAF RELIEF

Local Society Takes Co-Operative Approach To Providing Medical Marijuana

A small yet passionate group of Calgarians is working diligently to 
provide medicinal marijuana to ease the suffering of those struck 
with debilitating illnesses such as multiple sclerosis, cancer and 
chronic pain.

Founded in the fall of 2002, the Calgary Medicinal Marijuana Centre 
(CMMC) is a not-for-profit co-operative that aims to provide its 
members with a reliable supply of marijuana through a network of 
authorized growers, to act as a support group and to educate people 
on the oft-vilified plant's effects on a variety of illnesses.

"For whatever reason, and it defies logic, some people are just dead 
set against marijuana," says Grant Cluff, president of the CMMC. "For 
me, and for many people, this indeed is a harm reduction drug." The 
role of educator is a natural fit for Cluff, who was forced to retire 
as a high school social studies teacher in 1988 after being diagnosed 
with multiple sclerosis. He spent the following 13 years using 
pharmaceutical drugs for his MS, but over time the medications burned 
holes in his stomach, gave him constant heartburn and left him 
overweight, depressed and unable to walk.

Nearing his breaking point, Cluff, with the support of his family, 
began making changes to his lifestyle. Over a three-month period he 
slowly weaned himself off his medications, underwent a cleansing diet 
and began using marijuana to cope with his MS, losing nearly 22.5 
kilograms (50 lbs) of excess weight in the process. Now, seven years 
later, Cluff is off all pharmaceutical drugs, using marijuana 
exclusively to cope with his illness.

"(Now) I can't even get him to take Tylenol," says Eunice, his wife 
of 35 years.

Witnessing the improvement of her husband's health, Eunice's 
previously held belief that marijuana was as dangerous a drug as 
heroin or cocaine dissolved. She now spends many hours a week 
preparing baked goods for the CMMC, as well as delivering marijuana 
to its bed-ridden members.

In July 2001, the Canadian government approved the use of medicinal 
marijuana to ease the suffering of patients diagnosed with 
debilitating illnesses such as HIV/AIDS, multiple sclerosis, chronic 
pain and cancer. However, as marijuana is still classified as an 
illegal substance in Canada, many physicians are hesitant to 
prescribe marijuana to their patients.

The Alberta Medical Association (AMA) advises its physician members 
to "think twice" before filling out forms for patients to receive 
medicinal marijuana as the AMA feels the treatment is not 
evidence-based, long-term effects are unknown, and there are no 
guidelines for appropriate dosage. Similarly, the Canadian Medical 
Protection Association advises its 60,000 members to have patients 
sign a waiver before prescribing marijuana for medicinal use.

Critics often point to the harmful effects on one's lungs caused by 
smoking marijuana, but the CMMC recommends its members only inhale 
through a vapourizer (a device removing up to 95 per cent of 
carcinogens associated with marijuana smoke) or by ingesting it 
through baked goods.

According to a Health Canada document released in 2003, a lethal 
dosage of marijuana would require a person to smoke 675 kilograms in 
a 15-minute period, and states that aside from the hazards related to 
marijuana smoke, "the adverse effects are within the range tolerated 
for other medications."

Cluff says he uses three to four grams a day and needs to use 
marijuana every hour or two in order to keep his muscles from 
stiffening up too much. After inhaling a few puffs from a vapourizer, 
he makes his way to a well-secured room that houses nearly a dozen 
marijuana plants he is allowed to grow under his exemption status.

He explains there are two main strains of the plant, Sativa and 
Indica. From these two, there are dozens more variations, each with 
unique properties and characteristics. According to Cluff, Sativa is 
generally more useful for those suffering from nausea and depression, 
and works well as an appetite stimulant, while Indica is more useful 
for pain and muscle spasms.

"It's a political thing," Cluff notes. "Too many people out there are 
sufferers from Reefer Madness," he says, referring to the 1936 
propaganda film that instilled a fear of marijuana in the minds of a 
generation.

According to Sue Stevenson, director of membership for the CMMC, the 
centre isn't about changing laws and attitudes with flag-waving 
activism. "Our focus is to reach people that need us," she says. It 
is the Cluff's infectious passion for the centre that drives the 
volunteer members to move mountains, says Stevenson, who also suffers from MS.

Stevenson knew marijuana helped her cope with her illness but often 
had to rely on questionable sources for her supply, not knowing if 
the marijuana she paid for was even of good quality, or worse, laced 
with other, more harmful narcotics. She recalls spending the better 
part of a year searching in vain for the CMMC before finding 
information about the centre on a handwritten note inside a Calgary head shop.

Since joining the CMMC, volunteers at the centre have been busy 
ensuring the 117 members have the required medical verification of 
their illness to legally use marijuana. The group is also taking 
steps to become more visible in the city, by placing its number in 
the phone book and building a website.

However, some members are fearful that by becoming a more visible 
entity they may lose the one place where they feel safe and enjoy a 
sense of community with others with similar health concerns.

According to Kevin Brookwell, manager of public affairs and media 
relations for the Calgary Police Service, as long as the CMMC is 
operating under the law, its activities aren't an issue the police 
are concerned with. Stevenson explains that the group has no 
intention of breaking the law. "We're not going to do something 
illegal when we're already doing something that most people perceive 
as illegal."

With an annual growth rate of 17 per cent, the CMMC encourages its 
members to seek exemption status to build upon the centre's current 
network of authorized growers. This allows for the CMMC to have more 
control in the quality of the marijuana produced for its members, 
says Stevenson.

The centre currently sells its product at market value, equivalent to 
$220 an ounce, but as its members acquire more exemption cards and 
the number of growers increases, members will be able to get their 
medicine for less than street value while being ensured of its quality.

"People need this product," says Stevenson. "Who are we to say no, 
when we can provide good-quality cannabis."
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom