Professional athletes have played sports through pain at their own risk. Should Marijuana be allowed for pain management and medical purpose? The Yahoo! News conducted a "Weed & the American Family" survey with the Marist Poll in New York to examine Americans' attitude regarding athletes' use of marijuana.
Between March 1 and March 7, 2017, more than 1,100 adults were asked whether or not they believe athletes should use marijuana for pain relief.
Of those surveyed, 69 percent of Americans think athletes should use marijuana to relieve pain, while 24 percent of Americans do not think so.
Interestingly, though, a high percentage of older Americans did not support the marijuana usage in sports. 48% of people aged over 69 said they opposed athletes using marijuana. 52% of people aged 70 and older said they will have no respect for athletes who are admitted marijuana users.
Professional athletes advocate marijuana use
Numerous professional athletes are not fans of prescription painkillers. They have become vocal advocates of medical and recreational marijuana use for injured players.
Last month, approximately 1,800 former football players filed a lawsuit against the National Football League (NFL) for providing misleading information to players regarding the prescription of painkillers such as opioids.
Former Baltimore Ravens lineman Eugene Monroe, who is a pot proponent, hoped that raising awareness about medical marijuana would change NFL's viewpoint on cannabis usage.
"Once you understand how helpful [cannabis] has been to people and that it's a safer option than what we're currently doing, it's a no-brainer in terms of dropping our testing policies and punishing players for consuming cannabis," Monroe said in an interview with Fox Business in June 2016. "Our doctors in the NFL should become educated on cannabis and become certified to prescribe it in states where marijuana programs exist."
Chicago Bears quarterback Jim McMahon, who also joined a panel discussion among several NFL players at the Cannabis World Congress and Business Expo at Javits Convention Center in Manhattan last year, felt that he would be much healthier if he used marijuana to manage his pain during his playing career.
Mainstream professional sports leagues oppose marijuana use among players
Each mainstream professional sports league -- including the NFL, National Basketball Association (NBA) and Major League Baseball (MLB) -- has a policy of athletes using recreational drugs. The players would face consequences with fines and suspension if they were tested positive for a recreational marijuana use.
Although the NFL banned players from using marijuana, the league is considering opening a discussion with the NFL Players Association to modify the league's policy on marijuana usage among players, according to Yahoo Sports. NBA commissioner Adam Silver told GQ in 2014 that the league sticks to the policy that would not allow players to consume marijuana.
Several states allow medical and recreational marijuana, but the use of cannabis still remains illegal under federal law.