People with Alzheimer's disease - especially those in the District - should be aware of a 2014 article in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease that found that THC, the psychoactive component in marijuana, at low doses, "may slow or halt the progression of Alzheimer's disease." Since District residents can legally obtain medical marijuana for conditions with a doctor's approval, and considering the lack of effective treatments for Alzheimer's and marijuana's relative safety compared with many pharmaceuticals, it is an option worth considering. Richard Kennedy, Lorton The writer is a member of the steering committee of Safe Access-DC, an organization that advocates for access to medical marijuana. [end]
The Post's news story about the ban on farmers growing hemp -- a useful product that has no psychoactive properties -- illustrates how irrational U.S. drug policy has become ["Farmers Ask Federal Court to Dissociate Hemp and Pot," Nov. 12]. But I was also struck by the fact that the same section of The Post had more than two full pages of ads for alcohol -- a drug far more dangerous than marijuana. For example, in March the Lancet, the British medical journal, ranked alcohol as the fifth most dangerous recreational drug out of 20 cited, while marijuana was ranked only 11th (and tobacco, incidentally, ranked ninth). Richard F. Kennedy Lorton [end]
