Medical marijuana (or medical cannabis) refers to the use of marijuana as a physician prescribed therapy to reduce the pain or discomfort associated with some medical conditions or to lessen the side effects of some traditional medical treatments. Medical marijuana is used for a variety of ailments and conditions, including easing nausea and vomiting, stimulating appetite in chemotherapy and/or AIDS patients, reducing eye pressure in glaucoma patients, managing chronic pain and treating gastrointestinal illnesses. Recent research has also suggested that some of the compounds in marijuana may have beneficial qualities for patients suffering from a variety of other conditions, such as multiple sclerosis (MS), Alzheimer's disease, breast cancer, brain cancer, Lou Gehrig's Disease, insomnia, and even asthma.
