| AIDS patients take a lot of pills. The HIV virus | | | | Medical marijuana has a unique ability to interact with |
| attacks the body's immune system on multiple fronts, | | | | many other prescription drugs without adding a |
| causing intense nausea and lack of appetite. What | | | | laundry list of side effects to the already growing |
| that often means is, AIDS patients rarely feel like | | | | total. Studies have been done on Marinol, a |
| eating, and if by some miracle they manage to choke | | | | prescription drug that essentially synthesizes THC, |
| something down, it's more likely than not to make | | | | the primary active substance in marijuana. While the |
| them feel even sicker. Commonly referred to as | | | | drug does help, many believe it doesn't help nearly as |
| AIDS wasting, dramatic weight loss is a common side | | | | much as the real thing. |
| effect for patients with end stage AIDS, but even | | | | They posit that simply isolating one chemical does |
| those less far along experience issues with their | | | | not produce the same clear-cut relief patients who |
| appetite, as well as the ability of the body to process | | | | have in some way inhaled pure medical marijuana |
| nourishment. | | | | have received. Research has simply shown that there |
| This is where the pills come in. Since the immune | | | | is no combination of other drugs that provide the |
| system in an AIDS patient is so compromised, | | | | same pain relief, nausea suppression, and appetite |
| numerous pills - colorfully called a cocktail - are | | | | increasing properties as cannabis. In addition, anything |
| devised to keep the blood flowing properly, maintain | | | | taken in pill form is naturally harder for the body to |
| an even keel amongst the body's working organs, | | | | absorb, and the time delay can often mean the |
| and stabilize nausea to a reasonable level. | | | | difference between eating and not eating for an |
| With the use of many prescription drugs, a | | | | entire day. |
| 'reasonable level' of nausea is often still uncomfortable | | | | Due to the frequent application of medical marijuana |
| and the idea of consuming food of any kind may still | | | | to treat AIDS patients in the US, AIDS wasting has |
| seem unappetizing. Everyone's body is different, but | | | | decreased. The numbers in other parts of the world, |
| many AIDS patients have found great relief in | | | | where marijuana is too costly to obtain, remain |
| nausea, and an increase in appetite, by the medicinal | | | | unchanged. This sort of very simple, easy to |
| use of marijuana. | | | | understand data, is impossible to ignore. |