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Transcript
MARIJUANA WEED Report in Health 3 Introduction Marijuana, common name for a drug made from the dried leaves and flowering tops of the Indian hemp plant Cannabis sativa. People smoke, chew, or eat marijuana for its hallucinogenic and intoxicating effects. It is known by a number of slang names, including “pot,” “grass,” “reefer,” “weed,” and “Mary Jane.” The flowering tops of the Cannabis plant secrete a sticky resin that contains the active ingredient of marijuana, known as delta-9tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The plant has both male and female forms, and the sticky flowers of the female plant are the most potent. Hashish is a similar drug prepared from the same plant. It differs from marijuana in that it is comprised of only the resin from the plant, whereas marijuana is made up of flowering tops and leaves. Known in India, Central Asia, and China as early as 3000 bc, marijuana has long been used as both a medicine and an intoxicant. It gained widespread use in the United States in the 1960s and 1970s, becoming the second most popular drug after alcohol. In subsequent decades its use continued to increase, particularly among American teens. According to a survey prepared in 1998 by the United States Drug Enforcement Agency, marijuana use among teenagers increased almost 300 percent from 1992 to 1998. Most countries consider marijuana an illegal substance, but individual countries vary on how they prosecute the use and possession of marijuana. Some countries only impose small fines, while others impose harsher punishment, including imprisonment. In June 2005 the Supreme Court ruled 6 to 3 in Gonzales v. Raich that federal antidrug laws take precedence over state laws authorizing the medical use of marijuana. Voters in 11 states had approved so-called medical marijuana laws. The first was California’s Compassionate Use Act in 1996. These laws generally allow patients with diseases such as cancer and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) to grow and use marijuana with a physician’s approval for medical purposes. Although the Court’s ruling in Gonzales v. Raich did not overturn the state laws, it did override any provisions in those laws exempting patients in possession of medical marijuana from federal prosecution under the Controlled Substances Act (part of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970). In its majority opinion, the Court held that the commerce clause of the U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to prohibit the local cultivation and use of marijuana, even if those activities comply with state law for medical use and the drug does not cross state lines. The dissenting justices, including Chief Justice Rehnquist, warned that an expansive interpretation of the commerce clause would allow federal encroachment of states’ rights. Effects Many users describe two phases of marijuana intoxication: initial stimulation, which includes giddiness and euphoria, followed by sedation and pleasant tranquility. Mood changes are often accompanied by altered perceptions of time and space. Thinking processes become disrupted by fragmentary ideas and memories. Many users report increased appetite, heightened sensory awareness, and general feelings of pleasure. Negative effects of marijuana use can include confusion, acute panic reactions, anxiety attacks, fear, a sense of helplessness, and loss of self-control. Chronic marijuana users may develop amotivational syndrome characterized by passivity, decreased motivation, and preoccupation with taking drugs. Like alcohol intoxication, marijuana intoxication impairs judgment, comprehension, memory, speech, problem-solving ability, reaction time, and driving skills. The effects of long-term marijuana use on the intellect have not been established, and there is no evidence that marijuana causes brain damage. Smoking marijuana can damage the lungs, however, and long-term use may increase the risk of lung cancer. Although marijuana is not physically addicting and no physical withdrawal symptoms occur when use is discontinued, psychological dependence develops in some 10 to 20 percent of long-term regular users. Abnormal ovulation can be caused by a number of disorders of the endocrine system, including thyroid disease, diabetes mellitus, and polycystic ovarian syndrome. Certain chemicals can affect hormonal levels and adversely affect fertility. For instance, marijuana use can shorten the menstrual cycle. Cigarette smoking reduces some types of hormone production and may deplete egg supply. Marijuana Plant Marijuana is formed from the dried leaves and flowering tops of the Indian hemp plant Cannabis sativa. Popularly known as “grass,” “pot,” “reefer,” and “Mary Jane,” marijuana is smoked or chewed for its intoxicating effect, and it has also been used as a sedative and analgesic. Hashish is formed from the resin of the flowering tops of the same plant, and it is five to eight times more potent than marijuana when smoked. Cannabis contains a coarse, tall, hairy annual herb that provides fiber from its stems, oil from its seeds, and drugs from its leaves and flowers. The only species of Cannabis, also called hemp or India hemp, is a native of Central Asia but is widely cultivated and found as a weed throughout North America. The plant grows up to 1.8 m (6 ft) tall, with coarsely-toothed, palmately divided leaves and inconspicuous clusters of flowers. Depending on the product desired, the methods and areas of production vary. Hemp is grown mainly in temperate regions. Seeds yield a drying oil used in the manufacture of varnish, paints, and soap. The seeds are also used as bird feed. The fibers have a variety of uses in textiles and in rope. The drugs bhang, hashish, and marijuana contain as their principal component narcotic resins found mostly in the glandular hairs of the plants. These resins are most abundant under hot, tropical conditions. In the United States, cannabis may be grown only under government permit. Scientific classification: The genus Cannabis belongs to the family Moraceae. Hemp is classified as Cannabis sativa. Hemp, common name for an Asian annual herb, is known for its strong, pliable fibers. This species is often called true hemp or Indian hemp. It is cultivated in Eurasia, the United States, and Chile. A hemp plant may be as small as 91 cm (36 in) or as high as 5 m (15 ft), depending upon the climate and soil type. The male plants bear flowers in auxiliary racemes and die soon after pollination. Female plants bear flowers in short, crowded spikes and die soon after the seed matures. Plants of both sexes are used for fiber. Hemp stems are hollow and have a fibrous inner bark. The fibers from this bark are used to make a great variety of textile products, including coarse fabrics, ropes, sailcloth, and packing cloth. Soft fibers, used for making clothing fabrics in Asia, are obtained from hemp harvested at the time of pollination; strong, coarse fibers are obtained from mature plants. The fibers are removed and processed by methods similar to those used in processing flax. Partially decomposed, the stalks are dried, broken, and shaken to separate the woody stalks from the fibers. Hemp The annual herb Cannabis sativa, commonly known as hemp, is cultivated in the United States, Chile, Europe, and Asia for a variety of purposes. Manufacturers of soft clothing fabrics extract recently pollinated fibers from the inner bark of the hemp stem, while producers of coarse fabrics, ropes, and sailcloth utilize the strong, coarse fibers of more mature stems. In addition, the flowers and leaves of the hemp plant are used to produce narcotics such as hashish and marijuana. The seed of hemp is commonly used as birdseed. Hempseed also yields an oil, called oil of hemp, used in the manufacture of soap and oil paints. A resin, called charas, produced by female flower heads and seeds of hemp, is used in narcotic smoking mixtures in India. Flowers and leaves of hemp are used to produce the narcotics bhang, hashish, and marijuana. Unrelated plants that are commonly called hemp include henequen, sisal, bowstring hemp, and Manila hemp. Sunn hemp is obtained from a leguminous herb native to India. Scientific classification: Hemp belongs to the family Moraceae. It is classified as Cannabis sativa. Henequen, sisal, and bowstring hemp belong to the family Agavaceae. Manila hemp belongs to the family Musaceae. Sunn hemp belongs to the subfamily Papilionoideae, in the family Fabaceae (formerly Leguminosae), and is classified as Crotalaria juncea MARIJUANA AND CHEMOTHERAPHY The federal government approved plans allowing physicians to prescribe synthetic marijuana pills for cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. The chemical tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, found naturally in marijuana, has been shown helpful in some cases in relieving the often severe nausea and vomiting associated with such therapy. MARIJUANA AND HEALTH The long-term health effects of marijuana remain uncertain, but a panel of experts convened by the Institute of Medicine of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences reported this February that the drug produces a variety of short-term, reversible effects. These and other suspected effects caused the panel members to issue a strongly worded warning about the potential dangers of marijuana. 'Our major conclusion,' they wrote, 'is that what little we know for certain about the effects of marijuana on human health—and all that we have reason to suspect—justifies serious national concern.' The panel recommended that research efforts into the health effects of the drug be greatly expanded. The effects of marijuana, currently the most commonly used illicit drug in the United States, are varied. It has been shown to impair physical coordination, hamper short-term memory, and interfere with the ability to follow a moving object and to detect a flash of light. The panel reported that the drug also impairs oral communication and slows learning. The effects on memory, learning, and communication are especially worrisome because much of the heavy use of marijuana is by adolescents during school hours. The drug also has effects similar to those produced by cigarette smoking. The panel reported that chronic heavy smoking of marijuana causes inflammation and other changes in the airways to the lungs. Moreover, there is a strong possibility that prolonged, heavy marijuana smoking will lead to cancer of the respiratory tract or to serious lung impairment. The effects may be exacerbated in those who smoke both marijuana and tobacco, since the combination of the two may have greater cancer-causing potential than does either substance alone. Some cardiovascular effects of the drug—temporarily raising heart rate and possibly blood pressure—are not likely to damage healthy people, the panel found, but they do pose a threat to those with high blood pressure, cerebrovascular disease, and coronary atherosclerosis. There is a possibility that marijuana affects fertility, especially in males. The number and movement of sperm decrease in males who are chronic users of marijuana. Researchers are uncertain how this affects the users' chances of fathering children. For women of childbearing age, marijuana may also hinder fertility. The results of animal studies show effects on ovulation and levels of reproductive hormones. The panel warned that the potential hazards of the drug may extend beyond the short-term effects noted, since marijuana's components and their metabolic products remain in the body for a long time and accumulate in the tissues. The effects of cumulative high levels may be more serious than the effects of a single dose. Estimated Numbers of Lifetime Users of Illicit Drugs, Alcohol, and Tobacco in the United States Data are for U.S. population aged 12 and older. In thousands. Drug Any illicit drug 1985 1990 1995 2000 66,172 68,838 72,426 86,931 Marijuana and hashish 56,547 61,266 65,545 76,321 Cocaine 21,495 22,617 21,700 24,896 N/A 2,967 3,895 5,307 Inhalants 15,167 11,562 12,016 16,702 Hallucinogens 13,221 15,925 20,129 26,125 PCP (phencyclidine) 3,811 4,019 6,718 5,804 LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) 8,889 11,656 15,852 19,642 Heroin 1,826 1,517 2,451 2,779 29,386 22,731 21,446 32,443 14,139 11,156 10,360 14,661 9,260 5,609 5,760 7,142 Tranquilizers 14,692 8,020 8,251 13,007 Analgesics 14,693 12,751 12,806 19,210 43,130 39,190 40,426 52,605 1 Crack Nonmedical use of any psychotherapeutic 2 Stimulants Sedatives Any illicit drug other than marijuana 1 1) 'Any illicit drug' indicates use at least once of marijuana or hashish, cocaine (including crack), inhalants, hallucinogens (including PCP and LSD), heroin, or any prescription-type psychotherapeutic used nonmedically. 'Any illicit drug other than marijuana' indicates use at least once of any of these listed drugs, regardless of marijuana use; marijuana users who have also used any of the other listed drugs are included. 2) Nonmedical use of any prescription-type stimulant, sedative, tranquilizer, or analgesic; does not include over-the-counter drugs. (N/A = not available.) Source: U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration END !!!LIVE A WEED-FREE LIFE!!!