Marijuana And Its Effects On The Human Body

Marijuana is a drug that divides people. Some people claim it as the wonder drug of the '90s, capable of relieving the symptoms of many serious illnesses. Others curse the day the cannabis plant was ever discovered. From pain relief to stimulating the appetites of patients on chemotherapy, marijuana seems to have plenty going for it as a medicine. The legalization of marijuana is a large controversy in many parts of the world today, but the obvious negative effects that the drug induces has kept it from being legalized. Many researchers have a strong positive attitude towards marijuana. It has been said that the drug is “worth investigating and even providing as a medicine for pain relief, severe

Marijuana is considered in popular culture to be a widely accepted mainstream recreational illegal drug used in the United States; its use comes with severe adverse side effects that are often overlooked. Long-Term use of marijuana is shown to have negative effects on physical, mental, and environmental health. Studies conducted within the United States have shown that up to 20% of daily marijuana users become dependent (Marijuana and Lung Health) showing a physical or emotional need for the drug. Marijuana use has the potential to affect every aspect of a person's physical and mental wellbeing negatively. Its use also comes with potentially life-altering risks to one's future including an individual’s likelihood of obtaining a degree, impacting

Smoking marijuana is best described as a one-way ticket to negative side-affects. Based on Lifetime Health by Friedman, D. P., Stine, C. C., and Whaten S. “smoked marijuana are felt within minutes and may last for 2 or 3 hours”(2009). Short term effects consist of slowed thinking ability, difficulty paying attention, distorted sense of time, and many more. (Friedman, D. P., Stine, C. C., and Whaten S. (2009). Long term effects include frequent respiratory infection, impaired learning and memory, and even panic attacks (Friedman, D. P., Stine, C. C., and Whaten S. (2009). Thus, the ingestion in smoking marijuana can cause harmful outcomes, which are

Marijuana is considered in popular culture to be a widely accepted mainstream recreational illegal drug used in the United States; its use comes with severe adverse side effects that are often overlooked. Long-Term use of marijuana 'sis shown to have negative effects on physical, mental, and environmental health. Studies have shown that in the United States, up to 20% of daily marijuana users become dependent (Marijuana and Lung Health) showing a physical or emotional need for the drug. Marijuana use has the potential to affect every aspect of a person 's physical and mental wellbeing negatively. Its use also comes with potentially life-altering risks to one 's future including an individual’s likelihood of obtaining a degree, impacting their future earning potential and decreasing their overall reported life satisfaction. Once dependent on marijuana, people stop caring about their schooling. Long-term use of smoking marijuana can result in the inability to learn, retain information and think critically.

In American Marijuana is becoming a popular drug with over 100 million people using it . Marijuana is known for being “safe” and “harmless” to a person's health. Upon looking closer at the fact you’ll find this is not true. In fact Marijuana has severe short term and long term effects. According to www.drugabuse.gov some of the short term affects are altered senses, mood changes, impaired movement, difficulty thinking, and impaired memory. In addition to this long term effects are Breathing problems, increased heart rate, and problems with child development during and after pregnancy. To go into more detail Marijuana can affect breathing because the smoke irritates the lung which causes coughing better known as a smokers

Marijuana smoke is a complex mixture that has many chemical components and biological effects similar to tobacco smoke. However, it also contains some different ingredients. This suggests the strong possibility that marijuana, like tobacco, could lead to lung cancer, or create respiratory distress. ?Smoking marijuana also causes changes in the heart and circulation that are characteristic of stress? states Morgan (5). Current evidence has shown marijuana also causes some chemical changes in the brain. After exposure to this drug, there have been reports of effects on brain electrical activity in human beings and in animals. Marijuana also has been found to produce an acute brain syndrome. ?This is a more severe mental problem consisting of confusion and loss of contact with reality? stated Berger (8). The main reason that the United States Drug Enforcement Agency doesn't want marijuana use to be legalized is because there is no evidence to date that proves that marijuana is an effective drug when used for medicinal purposes. Scientists have researched this drug for twenty years and have yet to produce reliable scientific proof that marijuana has medical value. New findings show that marijuana is acutely harmful to AIDS and cancer patients because the active ingredient in marijuana acutely reduces the white blood cells that fight off infection. The United States Drug Enforcement Agency agrees with police departments that if marijuana use is legalized, crime could

Marijuana is actually one of the only drugs that affects cell division, which can cause birth defects during a pregnancy. Inhaling smoke will actually cut off oxygen to a fetus’s brain, which also puts the baby at risk for birth defects. Women who use during a pregnancy are more likely to have placenta problems, which can cause a baby to be premature. A lot of babies born to women who smoke are born underweight, or smaller in general. It can affect the baby’s head size, foot size, or overall size. Newborns can have a higher pitched cry, delayed visual responses, and trembling. Growing up these children will encounter poor motor, verbal, spelling, and reading skills. These children have a higher risk for depression, anxiety, and even childhood cancers.

The legalization of marijuana has been an ongoing battle for many years. Marijuana is an addictive drug that is made of the leaves for the plant Cannabis. Common ways to induce the drug are by smoking the plant from either a water pipe or a joint which is much like a cigarette. It can also be brewed as tea or mixed into food. Supporter of making marijuana legal often argue that it isn’t nearly as harmful as alcohol or nicotine. However, when taking a closer look at marijuana and thinking about the future, marijuana legalization is not the best idea.

Smoking marijuana, in some ways, is like smoking cigarettes. Marijuana can produce airway injury, coughing and wheezing, some of the symptoms of cigarette smoking (Marijuana). But the downfall to smoking marijuana is it contains almost 50% more benzopyrene (the cancer-causing chemical in tobacco) than a cigarette (Fact Sheet). Marijuana contains cancer causing agents and toxic particles that can lead to bronchitis, emphysema, and lung cancer (What to Teach Kids 3). People do not realize how much more serious the risks of smoking one joint are compared to smoking one cigarette. Studies show that someone who smokes five joints per week may be taking in as many cancer-causing chemicals as someone who smokes a full pack of cigarettes every day (Marijuana). The affects of smoking marijuana are much severe than smoking cigarettes.

1. Attention, memory and learning are impaired among heavy marijuana users, even after users discontinued its use for at least 24 hours. Heavy marijuana use is associated with residual neuropsychological effects even after a day of supervised abstinence from the drug. Heavy users displayed significantly greater impairment than light users on attention/executive functions, as evidenced particularly by greater preservations on card sorting and reduced learning of word lists. These differences remained after controlling for potential confounding variables, such as estimated levels of premorbid cognitive functioning, and for use of alcohol and other substances in the two groups. However, the question remains open

In 2006, A Drug Free World's "The Harmful Effects of Marijuana” emerged in the media. ADFW reasons that marijuana is harmful in numerous ways, including cerebral damage and debilitation to the immune system. Throughout the article, they also try to persuade the reader that cannabis is a "gateway drug" that undoubtedly leads the users into much harder drugs. When reading this article, one must consider that research to support anything can be found if one searches hard enough, but without a doubt the fallacy of their conclusion is due to their research seeking facts to support an already-assumed conclusion. Consequently, I have found that many of their points simply do not justify their conclusion.

Adolescents who inject marijuana via inhalation are more likely to report symptoms of chronic bronchitis, and have increased rates of respiratory infections and pneumonia (Tarter et al., 2014). It has also been associated with increased risk of myocardial infarction, stroke, and transient ischemic attacks during marijuana intoxication (Tarter et al., 2014). There have been numerous studies to suggest that marijuana increases your chances of developing lung cancer, but many of these studies have been disapproved because it had included people who smoke marijuana along with tobacco products. Regardless, there have been numerous, reliable studies that suggest that the inhalation of marijuana is associated with inflammation of the large airways, increased airway resistance, and lung hyperinflation (Tarter et al., 2014).

Lungs - Smoking marijuana can cause breathing diseases, including a chronic cough, bronchitis, and emphysema, and lung

Using marijuana can cause many respiratory and digestive system complications from time to time to the user’s body. Marijuana abuse causes severe problems related to the lungs. Problems related to marijuana abuse are commonly found in those people who start using marijuana

This is backed up by earlier research on the long-term effects of marijuana, which indicate changes in the brain similar to those caused by long-term abuse of other major drugs and a number of studies have shown a connection between continued marijuana use and psychosis. It also says that Marijuana can change the structure of sperm cells, deforming them. Even small amounts of marijuana can cause temporary sterility in men. Marijuana use can also disrupt a woman’s menstrual cycle. Studies show that the mental functions of people who have smoked a lot of marijuana tend to be diminished. The THC in cannabis disrupts nerve cells in the brain, affecting memory. Cannabis is one of the few drugs that causes abnormal cell division, which leads to severe hereditary defects. A pregnant woman who regularly smokes marijuana or hashish may give birth prematurely to an undersized, underweight baby. Over the last 10 years many children of marijuana users have been born with reduced initiative and lessened abilities to concentrate and pursue life goals. Studies also suggest that prenatal (before birth) use of the drug may result in birth defects, mental abnormalities and