Marijuana Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug in the United States. A dry, shredded greenish brown mix of flowers, stems, seeds, and leaves of the hemp plant Cannabis sativa, usually is smoked as a cigarette or in a pipe. It also is smoked in blunts, which are cigars that have been emptied of tobacco and refilled with marijuana, often in combination with another drug. As a more concentrated form it is called hashish and as a sticky black liquid, hash oil. There are countless street terms for marijuana including pot, herb, weed, grass, widow, ganja, and hash. The main active chemical in marijuana is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, also …show more content…
Research findings for long-term marijuana use indicate some changes in the brain similar to those seen after long-term use of other major drugs of abuse. One study has indicated that a user’s risk of heart attack more than quadruples in the first hour after smoking marijuana. Researchers suggest that such an effect might occur from marijuana’s effects on blood pressure and heart rate and reduced oxygen-carrying capacity of blood. Even infrequent use can cause burning and stinging of the mouth and throat, often accompanied by a heavy cough. Someone who smokes marijuana regularly may have many of the same respiratory problems that tobacco smokers do, such as daily cough and phlegm production, more frequent acute chest illness, a heightened risk of lung infections, and a greater tendency to obstructed airways. Smoking marijuana increases the likelihood of developing cancer of the head or neck, and the more marijuana smoked the greater the increase. A study comparing 173 cancer patients and 176 healthy individuals produced strong evidence that marijuana smoking doubled or tripled the risk of these cancers.
Marijuana use also has the potential to promote cancer of the lungs and other parts of the respiratory tract because it contains irritants and carcinogens. In fact, marijuana smoke contains 50 to 70 percent more
Marijuana is a mixture of dried, shredded leaves, stems and flowers from a hemp plant better know as Cannabis sativa. Uses of marijuana can be recreational or medical and the earliest recorded uses date from the 3rd millennium BC. (Rudgley, “The
But only 9 percent of marijuana users develop a dependence” (Boffey). Even still, of those 9 percent that develop a dependence, marijuana addiction is dissimilar to that of heroin, alcohol, or nicotine, from which withdrawal is often an extremely painful, physical experience. In addition, the long-held belief that marijuana is a gateway drug has been debunked, and even quietly removed from D.A.R.E’s list of gateway drugs. As far as medical research is concerned, the clear consensus is that marijuana use is less harmful to human health than most other banned drugs. While tobacco causes cancer, and alcohol abuse can lead to cirrhosis, there is no clear causal connection between marijuana use and any deadly diseases. Furthermore, it is less dangerous than highly addictive but legal substances like alcohol and tobacco. Marijuana use cannot, in and of itself, lead to fatal overdoses, and there is little evidence that it causes cancer. Like tobacco and alcohol, public policy concerns support the notion that it should be kept out of the hands of minors. The downsides to marijuana use are less compelling as reasons to foist criminal penalties on its possession, especially not in a society that allows nicotine use and celebrates
Marijuana is a very common street and recreational drug that comes from the marijuana plant. The plant that produces marijuana, as is well known, is the hemp plant cannabis sativa. The pharmacologically active ingredient in marijuana is tetra-hydro-cannabinol. Marijuana is used to heighten perception, affect mood and relax. It is estimated that about thirty percent of adults in the U.S. use marijuana. Many people think marijuana is harmless. It is not. Signs of marijuana use include red eyes, lethargy and uncoordinated body movements. The long-term effects may include decrease in motivation and harmful effects on the brain, heart, lung and reproductive system. People who smoke marijuana are more
The third largest agricultural good in the nation and a ten billion-dollar industry has nothing to do with the agriculture we are use to. This good is Marijuana, an illegal drug. It is "the most widely used illicit drug in America" n(Gold v). In Florida alone, marijuana sales are greater than all businesses except tourism (Gold v). What is marijuana? Marijuana, a plant, known as Cannabis Sativa, labeled that by Carolus Linnaeus in 1753 (Grinspoon 1), is "one of nature's hardiest specimens" (Abel ix). It can survive in any climatic condition possible, and flourishes like weeds do. Marijuana acts like a weed, stealing all the sunlight and nutrients around it. The soil needed for growing marijuana for its intoxicant, is dry
"As indicated by a 1988 government overview, pot is the third most generally used drug used of the United States, after liquor and cigarettes. An expected 66 million individuals - or 33% of all Americans - have attempted pot; and around 12 million of them are present users."# Marijuana is an unlawful medication that is developed all through the world. It is used for restorative medications, pleasure, and things we use and see today.
The respiratory system is greatly impacted by the use of marijuana, particularly the lungs and the bronchial passages. According to “ Marijuana: Health effects of recreational and medical use” by Wynne Armand MD, an assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School “smoking marijuana can irritate the lungs...worsening of conditions like asthma and cystic fibrosis”(Armand 2016). The chemicals that are included in marijuana, such as ammonia and hydrogen cyanide are toxic to the lungs and the bronchial passages. These chemicals are harmful and life threatening to the lungs. In “What You Should Know About Marijuana and Lung Cancer Risks,” it is stated that “Marijuana smoking does cause inflammation and cell damage, and it has been associated with precancerous changes in lung tissue”( ). Smoking marijuana can cause severe illnesses such as
Studies have shown that marijuana produces as many, if not more carcinogens than cigarettes do and also deposits four times as much tar into the body. Marijuana smoke is full of toxic gases and particles which can irritate the bronchial passages and lungs causing damage to the respiratory system. Regular marijuana smokers are more likely
Marijuana can be used in many different ways, it can be smoked or eaten. The types of highs that a person has would differ on the amount of marijuana that was taken in. According to an article “The Effects of Marijuana on Your Body,” published by Healthline, and written by Ann Piertrangelo and Kristeen Cherney, marijuana affects the respiratory, circulatory, digestive, immune, and central nervous systems. The respiratory system is affected just as if someone was smoking tobacco. The consequence for smoking it in general are the same as tobacco just not as severe. When smoking tobacco, it causes people to cough and there are similar symptoms present in people who smoke marijuana because the chemicals in the smoke being inhaled are bad for breathing
Cannabis inhalation—even over the long term—to the sort of adverse pulmonary effects associated with tobacco smoking. According to a 2012 study [by Mark J. Pletcher et al.] published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), lifetime, moderate cannabis smoking (defined as at least one joint per day for seven years or one joint per week for 49 years) was not associated with adverse effects on pulmonary function. Cannabis inhalation is also not associated with increased prevalence of certain types of cancers, such as melanoma, prostate cancer, or breast cancer. Nor has its use been associated with higher prevalence of tobacco-related cancers such as lung cancer. In 2006, the results of the largest case-controlled study ever to investigate the respiratory effects of marijuana smoking reported that cannabis use was not associated with lung-related cancers, even among subjects who reported smoking more than 22,000 joints over their lifetime.
However, from another perspective, legalizing marijuana is unfavorable and unacceptable. Studies have proved that there is intimate relationship between the occurrence of some diseases and the use of marijuana. Tashkin (2005,p.93) has pointed out that Marijuana use is associated with the respiratory and mental illness and is harmful to the cognitive and immune system. Additionally, using marijuana increases the risk of lung cancer (Hashibe et al., 2006, p.1830). Researches have manifested that the number of marijuana smokers suffering from the tortures of cough and sputum is larger than those of non-smokers for the reason that marijuana users usually smoke the mixture of marijuana and some hard drugs harmful to people’s lungs. It has been estimated that the consumption of marijuana will increase about
Marijuana, also called weed, herb, pot, grass, bud, ganja, Mary Jane, and a vast number of other slang terms, is a greenish grey mixture of the dried, shredded leaves and flowers of the hemp plant Cannabis Sativa. https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/marijuana/what-marijuana
Marijuana is a name which is used for the description of dried out leaves, flowers, stalks and seeds which are gotten from the hemp plant known as cannabis sativa. The seeds are known to contain some chemicals which are mind altering. An example of the chemicals that are contained in Marijuana is the delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol together with other compounds which are related to the plant. Marijuana is one of the illegitimate drugs found and commonly used in the U.S. In the recent years, there has been decline in its use. The youths are the ones who often use it. Marijuana is normally smoked in cigarettes that have been hand rolled or even water pipes called bongs. At times, some individuals smoke it in blunts, which are emptied cigars
Marijuana is a Cannabis Product made from Cannabis Sativa. The leaves of Cannabis Sativa are dried, crumbled and smoked. On the street, Marijuana is commonly called pot, grass, bud, dope, Mary Jane, and weed. The most common form of Marijuana is dried leaves that are green and brown. They are sometimes in buds, cut up or just whole leaves. Marijuana is usually smoked but can also be eaten(when digested in food). Marijuana slows down the nervous system and the high is caused by THC. Marijuana can relax you, excite you and make you hallucinate but then Marijuana also can increase your heart rate, give you panic and give you paranoia. Also though very popular no one has overdosed and died directly from Marijuana.
Another possible danger of Marijuana use is respiratory problems. For example coughing and mucus accumulation, that which are also side effects of smoking cigarettes. Marijuana smoke and smoke from tobacco are very similar. It’s full of a toxic mixture of gasses and particles that are a menace to the lungs. “One study found that extra sick days used by frequent marijuana smokers were from respiratory illness,” as said by Stephen P. Thompson from Marijuana is Harmful(2013). If marijuana is smoked regularly that person runs a higher risk of lung infection and/or chest illness. This person as well has the chance of constant sore throat and mouth. US National Library of Medicine’s article on Respiratory Effects of Marijuana and Tobacco Sample use in US sates, “Marijuana use was associated with respiratory symptoms of chronic bronchitis…” Other respiratory side effects of smoking marijuana are frequent phlegm, frequent wheezing, and shortness of breath.
I have some background insight on marijuana. My uncle told me that he smoked Marijuana for many years to help calm his pain from cancer. He said that smoking marijuana killed all his neuropathic pain. Also he told me that if he had to start over he would still keep smoking. My uncle stated that he did not feel any difference in his body after smoking Marijuana for 30 years. Other studies have shown that Marijuana doesn't affect your lungs at all but it helps them. The component in marijuana that is most used are called cannabinoids. Cannabinoids are not the main chemicals but they are still very important when smoking marijuana.