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The "Real" 411 on Marijuana

I have been inundated with information about "Weed" over the last decade working with teens and families. I decided to seek out facts from experts that would assist in my filtering between the true and the false. Marijuana is such an ingrained obstacle for our teens, many parents just assume they will be asked to partake and many believe experimentation is just a part of growing up. Marijuana has moved from secret citizenship to a media symbol with today's teenagers. It is mass marketed on clothing, magazines and music. There is an entire award winning, cable series based on the selling and smoking of marijuana by a suburban mom. A parent myself, I decided to share with you what I found to be the "real" 411 on marijuana.

Marijuana is the most commonly abused illicit drug in the United States and it has been around as early as 10,000 BC per newscientist.com. The main active chemical in marijuana is THC.

Marijuana is a mixture of dried leaves and flowers of Cannabis sativa, a hemp plant. There are hundreds of slang terms for this drug including "pot," "herb," "weed," "boom," "Mary Jane," "gangster," and "chronic." It is usually smoked as a cigarette (called a joint or a nail) or in a pipe or bong. In recent years, it has appeared in blunts. These are cigars that have been emptied of tobacco and re-filled with marijuana, often in combination with another drug, such as crack. Some users also mix marijuana into foods or use it to brew tea.

The short-term effect of marijuana use include: problems with memory and learning, distorted perceptions, difficulty in thinking and problem-solving, loss of coordination, increased heart rate and anxiety. Smoking five joints a week is equivalent to smoking a whole pack of cigarettes a day which leads to lung and respiratory problems, wheezing, chest cold and a bad cough.

Long-term use can increase the chances of tissue damage and lung cancer and also causes changes in the brain similar to those caused by heroin and cocaine.

Several studies have linked marijuana with poor school performance. It is harder to concentrate and retain information when a person is smoking marijuana. 60% of teenagers in drug treatment programs are there because of marijuana.

Marijuana itself does not lead a person to take other drugs; people take drugs to get rid of unwanted situations or feelings. The drug only masks the problem for a while. When the high fades the problem or unwanted situation returns, more intense. This is the reason why people turn to stronger drugs to hide from their problems.

Marijuana, under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), is classified as having a high potential for abuse, no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, and a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug or other substance under medical supervision.

Between October 2004 and January 2005, there were 1,777 Federal offenders sentenced for marijuana-related charges in U.S. Courts. Approximately 94.9% of the cases involved marijuana trafficking. Between January 2005 and September 2005, there were 4,396 Federal offenders sentenced for marijuana-related charges in U.S. Courts. Approximately 95.8% of the cases involved trafficking.

If you would like to learn more about the true facts of marijuana please log on to stopaddiction.com

I hope you find these true facts provided by Narconon as helpful as I do.

Be well,
Michael Behmer MA, MFT
Vive, Inc.

Posted by Michael Behmer on January 14, 2008 9:08 AM | Permalink

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