“The biggest killer on the planet is stress and I still think the best medicine is, and always has been cannabis.”

Cannabis has roots as far back as 2737 B.C. It has been referenced in ancient Chinese medicine. From China, the plant started to take root in places such as  India, North Africa, and Europe.

Marijuana refers to the leaves, flowers, and extracts of the plant Cannabis sativa and several closely related species commonly known as hemp. 

Cannabis is widely common in the United States and is known by a multitude of different names including marijuana, pot, weed, grass, hash, and many others. It is grown widely across the globe and is the only major recreational drug grown within the United States of America.

Historically studies have reported that around 500 A.D. medicinal uses started to include treating rheumatism, gout, and malaria. 

In 1545, Spanish explorers brought the cannabis plant to North America. By the year 1611, it was introduced in Jamestown and it quickly became the country's staple crop. It take almost 280 years before cotton would replace cannabis in 1890.

In 1970, the Controlled Substances Act designated cannabis as a Schedule I drug, meaning that it has:

• The highest potential for abuse.
• No accepted medical use.

Some examples of Schedule I drugs are: heroin, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (ecstasy), methaqualone, and peyote. 

 in 1978, New Mexico was the first state to legalize the medical use of cannabis.