How Does it Affect You?
A mild hallucinogen, marijuana has some of alcohol’s depressant and
disinhibiting properties. User reaction, however, is heavily influenced by
expectations and past experience, and many first-time users feel nothing at
all.
Effects of smoking are generally felt within a few minutes and peak in 10
to 30 minutes. They include dry mouth and throat, increased heart rate, impaired
coordination and balance, delayed reaction time, and diminished short-term
memory. Moderate doses tend to induce a sense of well-being and a dreamy state
of relaxation that encourages fantasies, renders some users highly suggestible,
and distorts perception (making it dangerous to operate machinery, drive a
car or boat, or ride a bicycle). Stronger doses prompt more intense and often
disturbing reactions including paranoia and hallucinations.
Most of marijuana’s short-term effects wear off within two or three
hours. The drug itself, however, tends to linger on. THC is a fat-soluble
substance and will accumulate in fatty tissues in the liver, lungs, testes,
and other organs. Two days after smoking marijuana, one-quarter of the THC
content may still be retained. It will show up in urine tests three days after
use, and traces may be picked up by sensitive blood tests two to four weeks
later.
The Impact on the Mind
Marijuana use reduces learning ability. Research has been piling up of late
demonstrating clearly that marijuana limits the capacity to absorb and retain
information. A 1995 study of college students discovered that the inability
of heavy marijuana users to focus, sustain attention, and organize data persists
for as long as 24 hours after their last use of the drug. Earlier research,
comparing cognitive abilities of adult marijuana users with non-using adults,
found that users fall short on memory as well as math and verbal skills. Although
it has yet to be proven conclusively that heavy marijuana use can cause irreversible
loss of intellectual capacity, animal studies have shown marijuana-induced
structural damage to portions of the brain essential to memory and learning.
The Impact on the Body
Chronic marijuana smokers are prey to chest colds, bronchitis, emphysema,
and bronchial asthma. Persistent use will damage lungs and airways and raise
the risk of cancer. There is just as much exposure to cancer-causing chemicals
from smoking one marijuana joint as smoking five tobacco cigarettes. And there
is evidence that marijuana may limit the ability of the immune system to fight
infection and disease.
Marijuana also affects hormones. Regular use can delay the onset of puberty
in young men and reduce sperm production. For women, regular use may disrupt
normal monthly menstrual cycles and inhibit ovulation. When pregnant women
use marijuana, they run the risk of having smaller babies with lower birth
weights, who are more likely than other babies to develop health problems.
Some studies have also found indications of developmental delays in children
exposed to marijuana before birth.
Marijuana as Medicine
Although U.S. law classifies marijuana as a Schedule I controlled substance
(which means it has no acceptable medical use), a number of patients claim
that smoking pot has helped them deal with pain or relieved the symptoms of
glaucoma, the loss of appetite that accompanies AIDS, or nausea caused by
cancer chemotherapy. There is, however, no solid evidence that smoking marijuana
creates any greater benefits than approved medications (including oral THC)
now used to treat these patients, relieve their suffering, or mitigate the
side effects of their treatment. Anecdotal assertions of beneficial effects
have yet to be confirmed by controlled scientific research.
Teens and Marijuana
Although dangers exist for marijuana users of all ages, risk is greatest for
the young. For them, the impact of marijuana on learning is critical, and
pot often proves pivotal in the failure to master vital interpersonal coping
skills or make appropriate life-style choices. Thus, marijuana can inhibit
maturity.
Another concern is marijuana’s role as a "gateway drug," which
makes subsequent use of more potent and disabling substances more likely.
The Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University found adolescents
who smoke pot 85 times more likely to use cocaine than their non–pot
smoking peers. And 60 percent of youngsters who use marijuana before they
turn 15 later go on to use cocaine.
But many teens encounter serious trouble well short of the "gateway."
Marijuana is, by itself, a high-risk substance for adolescents. More than
adults, they are likely to be victims of automobile accidents caused by marijuana’s
impact on judgment and perception. Casual sex, prompted by compromised judgment
or marijuana’s disinhibiting effects, leaves them vulnerable not only
to unwanted pregnancy but also to sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).
Marijuana Dangers
• Impaired perception
• Diminished short-term memory
• Loss of concentration and coordination
• Impaired judgement
• Increased risk of accidents
• Loss of motivation
• Diminished inhibitions
• Increased heart rate
• Anxiety, panic attacks, and paranoia
• Hallucinations
• Damage to the respiratory, reproductive, and immune systems
• Increased risk of cancer
• Psychological dependency
