Pubdate: Mon, 17 Mar 2014 Source: Boston Herald (MA) Copyright: 2014 The Boston Herald, Inc Contact: http://news.bostonherald.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/53 Author: Joshua P. Cohen Page: 14 POT NEEDS TESTING Having lived for 10 years in Amsterdam, I can attest firsthand to the negatives surrounding an insidious drug subculture ("Let's weed out idea that pot is not harmful," March 11). Marijuana is not a terrible drug, but can serve as a gateway to much more deleterious substances. Boston's drug subculture got a boost from partial decriminalization of marijuana in 2008. Medical marijuana dispensaries may make things worse. They involve people like ex-U.S. Rep. William Delahunt who lack training in health care. Given the current provisions in the law, dispensaries essentially bypass physicians. Moreover, they greatly expand marijuana's uses to include diseases such as epilepsy and glaucoma, where the evidence on efficacy is thin. The drug's safety and efficacy need to be established by the Food and Drug Administration. - - Joshua P. Cohen, Boston The writer is a researcher at Tufts University Center for the Study of Drug Development. - --- MAP posted-by: Matt