Cannabis Evolution

- I think medical marijuana

should be legalized because of its amazing health benefits.

When I got sciatica from moving heavy objects,

medical marijuana not only helped with my pain

but made me feel a lot better when I was walking around.

Not only that, but it's helped countless of my friends

who either have a family member

or have seizures themselves,

made the seizures either go away completely

or decrease them from having multiple seizures

to either a few a day or being able

to actually get around and do everything normally.

And by helping muscular pain and seizures not alone,

when one of my family members got cancer,

medical marijuana was not only able to help them

but it was able to mitigate a lot of the symptoms

and ultimately kill a lot of the cancer cells which,

I did the research and I can see

that medical marijuana helps with cancer relief as well.

So with all these benefits, helping with muscular pain,

helping seizures, helping people who have cancer,

there's no reason not to wanna legalize medical marijuana

so it can help the millions of people,

the millions of Americans who suffer from these conditions

in a natural and safe way,

'cause I've seen other people, myself,

try pharmaceutical drugs off the shelf

and it had bad effects.

It's not something that I would recommend to anyone.

- For thousands of years,

humanity has been using the cannabis plant

to treat various medical conditions.

The ancient Chinese, Egyptian and Greek peoples

all recognized the immense medical potential

of this often misunderstood plant.

Thousands of years later

in the most technologically-advanced age of human history,

medical marijuana is a controversial topic.

The early 20th century saw a vilification

and prohibition of marijuana,

a movement born out of greed, lies and racism.

Only now are scientists beginning to confirm

what the ancients knew, that marijuana is one

of the most medically applicable plants

Mother Nature has to offer.

Medical marijuana has the potential

to treat a wide range of psychological

and physiological conditions from cancer to PTSD.

Nevertheless, the illegality of marijuana

and the War on Drugs has stifled research into the drug.

It is time to dispel the lies and address the facts.

and controversial plants to ever sprout.

Hi, I'm Ahmed.

I'm from India and I think selling marijuana

should be made legal because of its medicinal properties.

A lot of research has proven

that marijuana is very helpful in treating lot of diseases

like joint pain, eye ailments, et cetera,

so that's why I think it should be made legal.

Also, it can be a good source of income for the farmers

and it can be also a good source of revenue generation

for the government, and also I think

that if cigarette and alcohol are legal,

then why not marijuana

which is considered to be less addictive?

Thank you.

- It is a story of thousands of years

and millions of people.

It is the story of a herb called cannabis

and a drug called marijuana.

Infamous but misunderstood.

The psychoactive drug, marijuana,

has been one of the most controversial substances

of the past two centuries.

Often known as weed or cannabis,

marijuana has been used for thousands of years

both recreationally and medically.

The 21st century has seen a rise in the awareness

of the medical benefits of using the marijuana.

This documentary shall explore the origins,

uses and benefits of medical marijuana.

But what exactly is the drug marijuana?

Marijuana, also referred to as weed or cannabis,

is a drug derived from the cannabis herb

sometimes referred to as hemp.

There are three known species of the cannabis plant,

all of which are indigenous to Central Asia

and easily recognizable by its unique leaf pattern.

The cannabis plant produces a group

of chemicals called cannabinoids.

These cause a range of physical

and mental effects when consumed.

In drug form, the plant usually comes in the form

of a dried flower buds called marijuana,

a resin called hashish, or various extracts

known collectively as hashish oils.

The main psychoactive properties of the plant

come from the flower of the plant

rather than the leaves as is sometimes assumed.

Cannabis is the fourth most popular recreational drug

on Earth behind caffeine, alcohol and tobacco.

In the United States alone,

an estimated 100 million Americans have

or do use marijuana recreationally.

The main effects of recreational marijuana

include a feeling of relaxation and slight euphoria.

The side effects often include feelings of hunger

or a possible increase in heart rate.

The effects of moderate recreational use

usually wear off within three hours.

The most common ways in which marijuana is used

include smoking like a cigarette, using a pipe,

using a bong, a vaporizer,

or sometimes ingested when included in ingredients in foods,

the most famous of these being the weed brownie.

In most countries, the perceived adverse effects

of recreational marijuana upon society and the individual

has led to the possession, sale and use

of marijuana to be made illegal.

In recent years, the illegality of marijuana

has come under scrutiny by many doctors, scientists,

and researchers who cite the medical benefits

of the drug's properties upon individuals suffering

from a range of ailments such as Alzheimer's,

cancer, Crohn's disease, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis,

nausea, PTSD, and general pain.

In its various medical uses,

the drug is known as medical marijuana

to separate it from its more common recreational uses.

The term medical marijuana refers

to the use of the whole unprocessed marijuana plant

and its pure extracts in treating the psychological

or physiological condition.

It must be sourced from a medical-grade cannabis plant

that has been meticulously grown

without the use of toxic pesticides and fertilizers.

Despite calls for fewer restrictions,

the FDA is yet to approve it as a medical treatment,

stating that there still have not been enough studies

proving the safety and effectiveness of the drug.

One reason for this lack of research is due to the fact

that the DEA considers marijuana a Schedule I drug,

the same category as substances

such as LSD, heroin and ecstasy.

Because of this, researchers are required

to possess a special license

to study the beneficial aspects.

Another reason for the limited application

in research of medical marijuana

is the fact that more than a century,

marijuana has been vilified by the media.

For example, one particularly absurd infomercial

from the '90s shows two young men socializing

when suddenly one of them starts to smoke marijuana.

Seconds later, the boy has shot himself in the head

with a rifle in an apparent fit of hysteria.

This is a wild exaggeration of the effects of marijuana.

The drug does not cause any suicidal fits of madness

and those who partake in such fearmongering

are the very people who understand the drug the least.

This documentary aims to dispel the myths

and address the facts.

We shall explore the effects and functions of the drug

and how it can be applied logically to medical benefit

of many who're suffering both physically and mentally.

However, in order to fully understand marijuana,

we must start at the beginning.

The usage of cannabis by humans dates back

to at least 3000 BC.

Ancient humans valued the plant

for its medical and recreational uses

as well as the plant's ability

to be turned into rope and fiber.

The psychoactive properties of the drug

were especially popular for ritual and religious uses.

Cannabis has a history of medical use

dating back thousands of years

and was first used by the ancient peoples

of India, China, and Japan.

In China, the use of cannabis in medicine

was probably a very early development.

The ancient Chinese regularly used the plant in cooking,

so the discovery of its medicinal properties

was a natural progression from this.

In 2737 BC, the Chinese emperor Shen Nung

who was also a pharmacologist wrote a book

on medical treatments methods which included a section

on the medical benefits of the cannabis plant.

The emperor recommended using cannabis for ailments

such as constipation, gout and rheumatism.

Cannabis is still considered one of the 50 fundamental herbs

of traditional Chinese medicine.

In India, cannabis is also mentioned

in the Hindu Vedas texts dating to between 2000 and 1400 BC.

Cannabis use also became a ritual part

of the Hindu festival of Holi.

The cannabis plant soon spread from East Asia

to the Middle East and Africa via trade.

An Egyptian papyrus from 1550 BC describes medical cannabis

and recommends its use for pain relief.