We said yes in the 70’s and now we are saying yes again for very different reasons. We try to get old healthy. We go to the gym. We make healthy shakes with chard for our cholesterol. We do it all. Many of us use marijuana to stay healthy too. There is marijuana   that is produced like a gummy bear but is not a snack. We use it when our joints are in pain or when we need sleep. We used to preach about the danger of drugs but as we got older and more knowledgeable about the plant many are now advocates for its medicinal purposes.

The statistics from the United States Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration   prove that Marijuana use among people age 55 and older is growing. In 2013 2,812,000 used the stuff and in 2014 it rose remarkably to 4,309,000 adults using pot. The reason is that mostly senior citizens live in states where marijuana is legal for recreational or medical purposes. In California medical marijuana only requires a doctor’s prescription. For senior citizens marijuana helps them with their arthritis. There are pot rubs and creams that you can rub onto your joints and legs or across your back or wherever you are expiring arthritic pain.

There is not enough money being put into research to substantiate these claims further. Many adults have nerve damage caused by chemotherapy or from diabetes.  Americans over the age of 65 account for only 14% of the nation’s population but they use more than 30% of all prescription drugs including highly addictive pain killers like OxyContin. There are now clubs in senior centers that get together to become knowledgeable about pot. They urge seniors to stay away from edibles and start slowly use late in the evening to see how their bodies respond to pot. A lot of education goas along with it including advice not to drive or use booze with it.

Senior citizens are more worried about the stigma associated   with pot use.  Our nation’s pot paranoia dates back to the 1930’s. During the Nixon administration the federal government declared pot as a Scheduled 1 drug. The same category that includes heroin and LSD. Even today pot is still illegal under federal law. In Colorado, the first state to sell pot for recreational use, it is surprising how it all has worked out over the past two years. This fall states across the country will vote on legalizing pot. Seniors’ across the country don’t want to get high but they do want a way out from their aches and pains.