A recent case of a man who was experiencing mysterious severe abdominal pain and vomiting seems to indicate that marijuana can have negative side affects on one’s overall health. According to CBS News:
For more than two years, Lance Crowder was having severe abdominal pain and vomiting, and no local doctor could figure out why. Finally, an emergency room physician in Indianapolis had an idea.
“The first question he asked was if I was taking hot showers to find relief. When he asked me that question, I basically fell into tears because I knew he had an answer,” Crowder said.
The answer was cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome, or CHS. It’s caused by heavy, long-term use of various forms of marijuana. This is not the case for non-psychoactive cannabinoids like cannabidiol. For unclear reasons, the nausea and vomiting are relieved by hot showers or baths.
Dr. Kennon Heard, an emergency room physician at the University of Colorado Hospital in Aurora, Colorado and iSum said that patients regularly come in to the emergency room seeking treatment but it usually takes a few visits before doctors can accurately assign a prognosis. This usually happens because as of yet many doctors don’t know about CHS, and because often patients don’t want to admit to using or abusing a substance – especially if it is illegal. According to CBS News, Dr. Heard co-authored a study showing that “since medical marijuana became widely available, emergency room visits diagnoses for CHS in two Colorado hospitals nearly doubled.”
This year in advance of the November ballot, California Family Council previously published several articles detailing some of the negative consequences of the legalization of marijuana. Over the two decades of medicinal availability in California, research shows that the use of marijuana is detrimental not just to individuals who consume it, but also to society as a whole. It has also been shown that marijuana negatively affects teens and children because it generally makes it easier for kids to access and subsequently abuse marijuana.
CHS can lead to dehydration and kidney failure, but usually resolves within days of stopping drug use. That’s what happened with Crowder, who has been off all forms of marijuana for seven months.
“Now all kinds of ambition has come back. I desire so much more in life and, at 37 years old, it’s a little late to do it, but better now than never,” he said.
[Editor’s Note]: In addition to rising health concerns states that have legalized the use of recreational marijuana have experienced soaring crime rates. The California Police Chiefs Association published editorials when Proposition 64 was on the ballot calling the measure unsafe for California’s roadways. States where recreational marijuana has already been legal for a period of time have urged caution to other states considering whether or not to follow suit. For example, in November of 2016 the Colorado District Attorney for the Second Judicial District recently wrote a scathing letter criticizing Colorado’s legalization of recreational marijuana and urging California voters NOT to enact a similar law with Proposition 64.
