The Harmuful Effects of Marijuana

THC disrupts the nerve cells in the part of the brain where memories are formed. This makes it hard for the user to recall recent events (such as what happened a few minutes ago), and so it is hard to learn while high. A working short-term memory is required for learning and performing tasks that call for more than one or two steps. Some studies show that when people have smoked large amounts of marijuana for many years, the drug takes its toll on mental functions. Among a group of long-time heavy marijuana users in Costa Rica, researchers found that the people had great trouble when asked to recall a short list of words (a standard test of memory). People in that study group also found it very hard to focus their attention on the tests

Opponents of medical marijuana have given many reasons for why it should not be legalized. One of the main reasons they argue is that “Marijuana smoke contains known carcinogens and produces dependency in users” (Medical). In many studies it has shown that it does have some harm such as the harms associated with smoking, but the National Academy of Science affirmed that “marijuana’s short term medical benefits outweigh any smoking-related harms for some patients”(Medical). Though marijuana has been proven to be damaging to the lungs than tobacco, a study in 2006 “found no evidence that marijuana smokers had higher rates of lung cancer” (Medical Marijuana). The FDA has tested the effectiveness of marijuana and has found that the cannabinoids are helpful in “treating pain associated with chemotherapy, postoperative recovery, and spinal cord injury, as well as neuropathic pain, which is often experienced by patients

People might think smoking marijuana is cool. They might try it without knowing what it is or what affects is has on you. Once someone smokes it for the first time, they might keep doing it again and again and they could get hooked on it for life. People who use marijuana usually never use any other type of illegal drugs, but more than seven thousand five hundred people get arrested for using marijuana every year. There is a wide variety of marijuana, but they are all based off of two marijuana plants, Indica and Sativa. Marijuana is very popular in America, and all over the world. Marijuana affects the body, it can be used as medicine, and marijuana can be addictive.

For the last century there has been an abundance of false information being spread about the drug marijuana. Even in commercials on television, misleading facts about the drug have been presented to the audience. Some misconceptions about the drug include its potential to cause addiction, the damaging of brain cells, genetic damage, violent behavior, and damage to the immune system. These misconceptions, which have plagued a large percentage of the population into thinking that marijuana is a bad drug, have caused many set backs in the process of gradual legalization. (http://legalizationofmarijuana.com/ )

2. Once they discover that the government has been lying about marijuana, they are less inclined to believe official warnings about other drugs. 3. Once they buy marijuana on the black market, they are more likely to have the opportunity to buy other drugs” (Sullum). There is an obvious connection between pot smoking and other drug use because people who like the “high” that they get from pot, will enjoy a different “high” from another drug. However there is no connection between using marijuana and the desire to use other drugs. It is a matter of personality, environment, and personal influence. Even a National Academy of Sciences panel stated “There is no evidence that marijuana serves as a stepping stone on the bases of its particular drug effect” in a recent report (Sullum). Many other pro-prohibitionists have stated that marijuana is responsible for a long list of health problems. Although marijuana is connected to immediate lung problems like occasional coughing and phlegm production, and an increased risk for acute chest infections, there has never been a single tie to cancer. The results of studies linking marijuana smoking to lung cancer have also been hindered by small test sizes and subject bias, and the true results are saturated with unconfirmed studies and secret procedures with public results (Buddy). Marijuana is gaining headway with the most recent Gallup poll reported that 48 percent of the population supports decriminalization of marijuana, while

Recently the drug policies and war on drugs has been increasingly seen in the headlines. Policies taken by the United States government against illegal drugs like marijuana are becoming apparent, and are coming into question. This has caused quite a controversy among supporters and opponents about legalization issues. Should marijuana be used as a medicine, as its advocates say? Or is it a dangerous drug of abuse that exposes users to brain damage and lung cancer? The debate over legalizing marijuana in all probability will continue for a long time, and it is a shame that this debate is so polarized. Marijuana produces long-term effects and damage on the brain. Although there have been reports of successful treatment in the use of marijuana as medicine, there appears to be more negative reasons why marijuana should not be used. Marijuana has been used for treatment of many diseases, some of which include cancer, post traumatic stress disorder, arthrosclerosis, digestive diseases, and HIV/AIDS. Despite the success for some medical issues, marijuana continues to be a “dangerous, addictive drug that poses significant health threats to users. Marijuana has no medical value that can't be met more effectively by legal drugs” ("U.S Drug Enforcement Administration"). The government and medical professionals should make it a point to emphasize the increasing problems of marijuana and its harmful effects on the body, as well as providing alternatives to

Although the truth can only remain as the truth, the opponent’s views are antithetical to mine. According to Bill Frist, a former US Senator, “Marijuana is a highly dangerous drug and the truth is that there are less dangerous medicines that offer the same relief.” However, this is just a hypothetical statement that is unsubstantiated. According to a study conducted by the National Institute of Health on November 4, 2013, “Natural, herbal cannibis(marijuana) is far more effective than pharmecuetical medicines.”

As an adolescent, I am aware of the frequent use of recreational drugs by adolescents, in particular cannabis. Many people believe that ‘smoking pot’ is harmless. I have undertaken this research project on the long term effects of cannabis on the developing, adolescent brain to establish whether there are long term effects on the brain from the use of cannabis as an adolescent, and to consider what scientific and medical evidence there is on this topic.

Marijuana while illegal on a federal level has been legalized in 18 states and the District of Columbia for medical use and also for personal use for anyone over 21 in Washington and Colorado. 48% of Americans admit to using marijuana according to a 2013 survey conducted by Scientific America. With the change in public opinion concerning marijuana the need to understand the effect and consequences associated with its use are vitally important. What are the effects on the brain and the rest of the body? Does it matter when you start using marijuana? Also what is the effect marijuana use has on a person’s life, to include school, work, family and friends.

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 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.

Marijuana - also named weed, hash, pot, Mary Jane, and many others– is, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the number one used illegal and addictive drug around the globe (Williamson, Buckland, & Cunningham, 2013). Users of the psychoactive plant range anywhere from adolescents to senior citizens, and from all social and economic classes. It has, in recent years, gained approval by the FDA for use as a medicine to help treat symptoms of various illnesses – both mental and physical. Thousands of individuals are now using marijuana, and numbers are likely to increase, as the drug may be on the verge of being legalized nation-wide. Surveys from the United States show large support in using marijuana for recreational purposes - 56% - and support for its use as medicine - 70% (Gonzalez & Swanson, 2012). Though multitudes of people use the drug for its effects and potential benefits, not many know exactly how it achieves these things within ones bodies or their minds. People, whether using the drug or not, need to know what marijuana is, how it interacts with the body and brain, and the effects that are produced from this interaction.

A lot of people are still stuck to the ideal that marijuana is dangerous to society and body. The facts are that the government has misled a lot of people about marijuana. These people are not well educated about the use of marijuana. Most people think person using marijuana is dangerous to the community, however, all the outcome of the research that the government carry out does not say anything about marijuana being dangerous. Use of marijuana for treatment has not just been discovered, according to Cohen Peter stated \" Cannabis, more commonly referred to as marijuana, has a long history of medical use in this country and worldwide\"(Cohen 20). Marijuana has been prescribed for pain relief, nausea, and glaucoma. It is the use as a powerful appetite stimulant which helps patients that have HIV/AIDS or cancer patients going through chemotherapy. Cohen wrote, \"smoked marijuana could ease the symptoms of AIDS wasting and produce gains in body weight\"(Cohen 21). When comparing, medicinal marijuana to other prescribed drugs, the prescribed drugs are a lot less effective, more expensive, and have dangerous side effects. Pills that were often given to people and some is strong painkillers which, are highly addictive, and that can cause overdoses. Marijuana leaf call \"cannabis\"(Cohen 20) is safer if used in the right dose without side effect. Today many patients are able to use marijuana as a method of treatment for their sickness. This is possible for some patient because, some state governments across the country have acknowledged cannabis known as marijuana for treatment. For the useful of marijuana for treatment, some physician were been given license to prescribed marijuana for the patient. However, these patients can have the necessary treatment, without been in

A major health issue that is seen with the use of marijuana is a loss of coordination. As a person uses the drug they begin to become slower and slower when an instantaneous reaction is required. For example, using marijuana can make it difficult for a person to simply catch a ball in the sport of baseball even if before using marijuana that same person did not have difficulty with this task. (“Marijuana”) The main ingredient in marijuana that has a negative effect on the body, specifically the brain, is THC. When the drug is inhaled it begins affecting the brain immediately. These effects include the aforementioned issue of losing certain motor functions in addition to a few other effects. One of the dangerous effects of marijuana in the more long-term spectrum is what THC does to the brain. According to “Drug Facts: Marijuana,” a recent study has shown that the use of marijuana causes a major deficit in the brain when it came to memory and learning. This effect carries into careers and lives, and therefore the legalization of marijuana in Colorado will cause an issue in the comprehensiveness of employees all over the state. The inability to comprehend and remember will be a financial and generally inconvenient strain on the economy of the state simply because employees will need to be retrained more often than if they did not use the drug marijuana. Furthermore, marijuana gives its users a sense of dizziness and sluggishness, which, if used during work or driving could

“Research Supports Medicinal Marijuana” was written by Rick Weiss and published by the Washington Post on Tuesday, February 13, 2007. The argument the author is trying to convey in this article is that new research is is being conducted that concludes and proves that medical cannabis is in fact beneficial for patients and does have medical properties. Weiss’s conclusion is that the government should allow more research into medical cannabis and the DEA should reschedule cannabis to a schedule two drug because of the studies conducted. Weiss’s main study discussed in his article was a five day study with patients in a hospital ward. Patients would smoke three cannabis cigarettes a day, with over half of them having pain relief because of the