Last updated on: 1/29/2009 | Author: ProCon.org

Lester Grinspoon, MD Biography

Title:
Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School
Position:
Pro to the question "Should Marijuana Be a Medical Option?"
Reasoning:

“Cannabis is remarkably safe. Although not harmless, it is surely less toxic than most of the conventional medicines it could replace if it were legally available. Despite its use by millions of people over thousands of years, cannabis has never cause an overdose death.”

Testimony before the Crime Subcommittee of the Judiciary Committee in the US House of Representatives, October 1, 1997
Theoretical Expertise Ranking:
     Key Experts
Physicians [Physicians are the "key experts" in the medical marijuana debate because the issue is thought by many to be ultimately based on the medical value and risks of marijuana, and Physicians, with their training and clinical work, should (at least in theory) have the best knowledge of marijuana's medical value and risks.] [Note: Key Experts definition varies by sites that have this designation.]
Involvement and Affiliations:
  • Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
Education:
  • MD, Harvard Medical School, 1955
Other:
    None found
Quoted in:
  1. Does Marijuana Cause Depression or Other Mood Disorders?
  2. Is Marinol Better Medicine Than Marijuana?
  3. Should Marijuana Be a Medical Option?
  4. For Which Symptoms or Conditions Might Marijuana Provide Relief?
  5. Does the Regular Smoking of Marijuana Cause Lung Cancer or in Any Way Permanently Injure the Lungs?