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Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Pot For Tots




TRENTON, N.J. - Vivian Wilson, who is 2 years old, could use some pot. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie isn't sure she should get it.
Christie, a Republican often mentioned as a 2016 presidential contender, is considering whether to sign a law easing access to medical marijuana for toddlers and teenagers. It would put New Jersey among the dozen states that make it easier for youngsters to be treated with the drug.
While New Jersey is one of at least 18 states to authorize medical marijuana use, its rules make it almost impossible for Vivian's mother, Meghan Wilson, 34, of Scotch Plains, to get the type of cannabis medicine that may help her daughter's epilepsy.
"It's beyond frustrating," Wilson, a consultant who runs clinical trials for drugmakers, said by telephone. Vivian gets seizures from a form of epilepsy called Dravet syndrome, she said. In Colorado and California, where it's easier to treat youngsters with pot, afflicted children have improved after receiving cannabis, and some are almost symptom-free, she said.
Democrats who lead the New Jersey legislature have put Christie, a former federal prosecutor, on the spot by sending him the bill easing access to cannabis for children as young as Vivian. It largely aligns the rules for minors and adults.
What I am missing here is a discussion of the cause of Dravet syndrome.

It is - or should be, by now - common knowledge that Pot, or Cannabis, produces cannabinoids, which are chemicals that affect the brain.
Among the various types of cannabinoids, there are phytocannabinoids, produced in growing plants, and endocannabinoids, produced naturally in the bodies of humans and some animals.

So...  is Dravet syndrome caused by a malfunctioning of the human endocannabinoid system?
If it were, then the use of phytocannabinoids - Pot ! - to remedy it is a rather obvious conclusion that even the rudimentary logic of our governmental bodies could make.
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