Imagine yourself at the unseasoned age of five years old. What do you see yourself doing? Are you playing tag with some of your friends? Are you going camping with your family? What if I told you that you couldn’t do any of this because of a neurological disease that could be treated by something that the United States deems illegal, even for medical purposes? Some children suffer from diseases that prohibit them from partaking in activities that other children so easily take for granted. An example of this is a young girl by the name of Charlotte Figi, a five year old child from Colorado who is handicapped by a neurological disorder that causes sudden convulsions of the body called epilepsy. Epilepsy is “a disorder of the brain that causes recurring seizures…can be triggered by illness or injury but most of the time, there is no known cause,” it has no known cure, therefore it can only be treated to control seizures (Pietrangelo, 2014). Charlotte suffers from severe epilepsy that affects her motor skills, speech, eating habits, behavior, and many other aspects of her daily life and her body. Fortunately, for Charlotte and other children that suffer from epilepsy, there is new hope on the horizon. Medical marijuana can be used for children with pediatric epilepsy to reduce their seizures and improve behavior such as motor skills, eating habits, and speech. However, it is only legalized in a few states across the country therefore, families such as the Figi family, must fight to find alternatives for controlling epilepsy when prescribed medications do not work. The legalization of medical marijuana would keep families that are seeking help from this disease from having to move to different states to acquire it medically and would assure everyone the equal opportunity to reap the benefits of having controlled seizures (Gupta, 2015).

Clinical trials and medical specialties of Cannabidiol (CBD) and CBD enriched extracts have brought about colossal significance as a potential regimen for pediatric epilepsy of all kinds. This conclusion has been generated through numerous online testaments from parents who conducted the use of CBD enriched products to their children as well as some media reports that appraise the use of CBD for those with severe epilepsy. A 2014 study conducted by many research pediatric neurologists from the Mattel Children’s Hospital at the University of California (UCLA) analyzed the use of CBD enriched extracts in one-hundred-seventeen epileptic patients ranging from three to ten years of age. This designed study was conducted through an online survey to discover what responses parents of epileptic children had on the capacity and effects of medical marijuana. The survey required respondents to specify that they were old enough to take the survey, attest to having a child with epilepsy, and confirm that their child has been exposed to some sort of CBD enriched treatment. The study showed that the use of CBD enriched products was followed by years of having been previously exposed to anti-seizure medications that failed to work. The study also revealed that because of the use of CBD enriched products “five respondents reported an increase in seizure frequency and eleven reported no change, one hundred (85%) reported a reduction in seizure frequency, including sixteen (14%) reporting complete seizure freedom” which is a remarkable number of patients experiencing the effectiveness medical marijuana has on epilepsy (Hussain et. al, pg. 139). The side effects that CBD enriched products brought included (but were not limited to) drowsiness, increased appetite, weight gain, and improvement in sleep, alertness and mood. The two most frequently encountered side effects during CBD exposure were increased appetite and weight gain, 29.9% of patients experienced an increase in appetite and 29.1% experienced weight gain. In addition to these data, 12.8% showed an increase in drowsiness, 53% experienced an improvement in sleep, 71% in alertness and 63% in mood. Notably, 93% of the respondents continued the use of CBD products. In conclusion, this study indicates that CBD enriched products might be effectual and a possible treatment of pediatric epilepsy (Hussain et. al, 2015).

A study conducted by many pediatric neurologists at the University of Colorado’s medical campus tested the effects of medical marijuana on animals and inferred that medical marijuana indeed has anticonvulsant properties. The study consisted of about 119 patients with some form of epilepsy in which the benefits of OCEs (Oral cannabis extracts) were reported to improve behavior/alertness in 46 patients (39%), improved motor skills in 9 (8%), and better sleep in 8 (7%). Parents of 58 patients (49%) experienced some improvements in seizures with OCEs causing worsening effects in only 10 patients. Whether OCEs benefit the patients determines the continued use of OCEs. If OCEs potentially improve epileptic side effects, parents or caretakers of epileptic patients are more likely to move to a state where medical marijuana is legalized (Treat, 2017). A concern of legalizing medical marijuana is opening a gateway to allow young adults to acquire the drug illegally by increasing the access and conveying the idea that marijuana is not risky or dangerous to use. Researchers have considered these concerns by comparing, through surveys, the use of marijuana by young adults in states where marijuana is legalized and where it is not. To produce concrete results the data had to have been pulled from surveys taken from two consecutive years. These surveys consist of high schoolers in state where marijuana is legalized and not legalized. In conclusion, this study did not find a significant difference between states with and without medical marijuana laws for the use of medical marijuana among teens (Hall, 2016).

The legalization of medical marijuana may will make it easier and safer for those who suffer from diseases but cannot get their hands on the drug. This is because they will be able to obtain the drug legally and won’t have to buy the product from the black market or grow it themselves illegally. The arrest rate for which people try to obtain marijuana will decrease significantly amongst those suffering from epilepsy when medical marijuana is legalized.

The legislature in South Carolina considers the use of medical marijuana to be exactly what those who suffer from severe diseases like epilepsy need. However, not everyone agrees with the legalization of medical marijuana, which is what the Compassionate Care Act (CCA) intends to promote. The CCA has been introduced and supported by South Carolina but even so it has only been passed through legislation in the state of New York. The act enables those suffering from diseases such as epilepsy and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) to expend about 2 ounces of medical marijuana every two weeks under a medical professional’s regulation. Brant Reese, a former police officer who suffers from a spinal cord injury says that he is not able to fully use his legs because he is always in pain. Reese is an advocate of the CCA because he believes that the use of medical marijuana is safer than previously used medications such as morphine. Opposing this view is law enforcement. The argument against the legalization of medical marijuana is that the (Federal Drug Administration) (FDA) and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) still license marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug meaning that it is highly addictive and can have destructive repercussions when used. Along with that argument is that allowing the use of marijuana either medically or recreationally in selective states can create disunity among the nation for those who are in support of legalization and those who benefit from the drug medically but are not given the benefits where they reside. Law enforcement would be much more accepting to the legalization of medical marijuana if there were actual evidence proving that it cures severe diseases. Likewise, the reason some are hesitant or against the legalization of medical marijuana is because it increases the access of marijuana illegally. This especially refers to those who don’t need it for pharmaceutical purposes. (Holland, 2017). Not everyone supports a “Schedule 1” drug, but the FDA could be well on its way to approving it by their standards. 

Patients or caretakers are considering the use of medical marijuana for severe diseases that constitute seizures or other harsh side effects because treatments for medications are not meeting their medical needs. However, even though these patients are seeking out refuge from medical marijuana, it should be noted that the FDA has not named marijuana as a safe and adequate drug for any significance. Although marijuana hasn’t become an approved drug, the FDA does, nevertheless, consider the attention that the use of marijuana has gotten in the attempt to use it as a treatment for diseases such as epilepsy. In response to this, the FDA mentions that, they “welcome the opportunity to talk with states who are considering support for medical research of marijuana and its derivatives to provide information on Federal and scientific standards” (FDA, 2017). For the FDA to approve a drug, clinical trials must be operated and offer significant scientific data that proves the drug to be effective and safe. Therefore, it is a difficult process for medical marijuana to become FDA approved because the use of medical marijuana on human subjects is illegal. However, the FDA has allowed the study of medical marijuana on patients with severe diseases to be done who have no other alternative treatment or medication. The FDA supports clinical trials that produce marijuana commodities that are secure and sufficient. Thus, states must lead medical research studies of marijuana that adequately prove the successfulness of medical marijuana to ensure that their MMLs meet the FDA’s requirements (Food, 2017). 

State legislators passed Medical Marijuana Laws (MMLs) to help patients with severe therapeutic diseases that were not successfully being treated by medicinal procedures. But now those who just simply want to legalize recreational marijuana are finding abusing the system by creating loopholes. Each state has a list of conditions for which could be treated by medical marijuana, such as epilepsy. Still, this opens a door allowing some to abuse the system by faking their symptoms of certain conditions just so they can get their hands of marijuana. This loophole is created by people adding conditions to the already approved list of severe diseases when a patient or medical professional concludes that the only other option of relief from pain is using medical marijuana. Another way people abuse medical marijuana is by profiting from the sale of the drug. Those who have a justifiable need or prescription for medical marijuana sell the drug to make money off it. “Researchers at the University of Colorado found that almost 75% of teens receiving treatment for marijuana abuse had abused medical marijuana that had been prescribed for someone else” also, a significant number of adults using medical marijuana are illegally selling it to minors. 

This argumentative essay discusses the use of medical marijuana, specifically how it affects pediatric epilepsy. Based on the research above, medical marijuana is extremely helpful to children with epilepsy, it is useful in reducing seizures significantly and improving other aspects of behavior like motor skills and appetite that were difficult to obtain before using medical marijuana. Many believe that it is beneficial because of the statistics and data that prove its effectiveness while others believe it can be detrimental to a child’s health. Furthermore, medical marijuana is not legalized in all states of America and some are against the legalization of it because they believe it is just a gateway to legalize marijuana recreationally. Medical marijuana is beneficial to children with epilepsy and proves this argument through statistics, data, and real-life accounts. The solution to the social issue of a lack of medical marijuana for patients who need to reap its benefits can be solved through the Compassionate Care Act (CCA). Medical marijuana should be legalized in every state of America so that families like the aforementioned, Figi family, will be able to obtain the benefits and wellness that stem from medical and legal cannabis. 
