Marijuana Kills

A recent article in Scientific American cites a study showing marijuana can kill antibiotic-resistant bacteria MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus). That might be great news if it could be used for that purpose.

3: Number of deaths in the U.S. from cannabis use as reported by the CDC in 2001

5,500: Number of average annual deaths in the U.S. from Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) as reported by the CDC between 1999 and 2005

829,600: Number of persons arrested for marijuana in 2006 as reported by the Bureau of Justice Statistics

16: Average annual mortality rate from AIDS per 100,000 U.S. state prisoners 2001-2006

6.3: Annual mortality rate for all males in the US from AIDS in 2005 (9,189 male deaths out of a total of 12,543 U.S. deaths)

LINKS

http://www.cdc.gov/eid/content/13/12/1840.htm

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dcf/tables/drugtype.htm

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/dcrp/tables/dcst06spt11.htm