TV doctor Sanjay Gupta turns over new leaf in debate on medical marijuana
CNN's top medical correspondent, Dr Sanjay Gupta, says he was wrong in opposing the medical use of marijuana in the past, and that he now believes the drug can offer real benefits for people with specific health problems.
CNN's top medical correspondent, Dr Sanjay Gupta, says he was wrong in opposing the medical use of marijuana in the past, and that he now believes the drug can offer real benefits for people with specific health problems.
Gupta, a brain surgeon, detailed his change in an article for CNN's website, entitled "Why I changed my mind on weed". He will narrate a documentary on the topic that will air today.
He wrote in magazine in 2009 about his opposition to laws that would make the drug available for medical purposes.
But Gupta said on Friday he had too easily associated marijuana with "malingerers who just wanted to get high".
He said he didn't look hard enough at research on the topic and had found new research since then.
Most of the research done in the United States about marijuana is about what harm it may do. Gupta said he'd found more research from outside the US that discussed its medical benefits.
