A great big handful.

That’s how many pills you take each day. Two for symptom relief. One for pain now, one later. Some to stave off anticipated maladies, and one for … well, you don’t know what for. It’d be simpler if you only had one medicine to take, so read “Healing with Medical Marijuana” by Dr. Mark Sircus (c.2017, Square One Publishers, $16.95, 193 pages), and you might find relief.

Marijuana, for use as medicine, has been around for “almost as long as history has been recorded.” Up until 1854, it was widely prescribed as treatment in the U.S. but in 1937, the most common ingredient, cannabis, was “outlawed.”

Today, medical marijuana is legal in some states but, says Sircus, it’s very underused though it’s as safe as aspirin and, in one form or another, can benefit nearly anyone. It can even be used in pediatric medicine, he asserts.

Contrary to what you may have heard, you can consume marijuana without smoking it. To get the greatest benefit, Sircus says, consider adding other natural elements to your cannabis; magnesium chloride and cannabinoid products together, for example, are like “The Batman-and-Robin superhero medical team…” Getting oils from the cannabis is essential, and it can be used topically in some instances; for some patients, actually eating the dried plant is effectual. And finally, you can smoke it, as people have been doing for centuries.

Study after study, Sircus claims, has shown that marijuana is useful in treatment of allergies, dementia, ALS, appetite loss, inflammation, Parkinson’s Disease, pain of all sorts, AIDS, epilepsy, PSTD, and other afflictions. Cannabis can cure cancer, he says. And it’s about time that nation-wide laws and lawmakers catch up with what marijuana users and medical personnel already know.

There was one thing in “Healing with Medical Marijuana” that bothered me above all: the words “ask your doctor” are terribly lacking.

While it’s true that author Dr. Mark Sircus warns physicians that they “must be careful,” and though I saw mentions on working with your doctor for correct dose or method, those warnings aren’t specific or strong enough – especially if you are already ill or hurting and especially when Sircus himself offers alarming health warnings between assurances that cannabis is safe to consume. There are, as he says, several maladies in which cannabis is definitely not recommended, and there’s an entire section here on addiction and weaning oneself from the substance.

That can’t be comforting for a nervous first-time user. For parents, I can’t even…

Still, Sircus offers studies to back up his claims and assertions, albeit not ones from big-name research laboratories. Of course, anecdotal evidence is abundant (as it undoubtedly is in readers’ lives) which serves somewhat to underscore the information. There’s even some chemistry here, which is good to know but it’s absolutely not enough.

Yes, there are millions who are helped by medical marijuana but this book, even so, should not replace a doctor. Therefore, read “Healing with Medical Marijuana” with physician on speed-dial, eyes wide open, and brain engaged, or you could find a handful of trouble.

The Bookworm is Terri Schlichenmeyer. Email her at bookwormsez@yahoo.com.