Pubdate: Wed, 14 Feb 2007
Source: Ledger Dispatch (Jackson, CA)
Copyright: 2007 Amador Ledger Dispatch
Contact:  http://www.ledger-dispatch.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3431
Author: Diane M. Peebles, R.A.S.
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)
Note: Diane M. Peebles is the prevention coordinator for the Amador 
County Behavioral Health Services, Substance Abuse Division.

PARENTS ARE URGED TO LEARN ABOUT TODAY'S MARIJUANA

So it's only marijuana. Many individuals do inhale marijuana and the 
youth have been given the message that smoking this drug isn't as bad 
as those "other" drugs. That is if the person that is giving the 
message even acknowledges that marijuana is a drug.

But today's marijuana is not yesterday's marijuana. I find this to be 
very interesting information for parents, teachers and anyone who has 
had the questions asked or will be asked: What's so wrong with 
smoking marijuana? It's not a drug? Right?

Today's Marijuana

You can hardly walk out the door, turn on the TV or read the 
newspaper without being confronted with the issue of marijuana - its 
harmfulness or harmlessness, its medical usefulness or lack thereof, 
its grouping with alcohol as the first drug of experimentation, not 
to mention the fact that state laws and federal laws regarding its 
use and legality are often out of sync.

There is so much misinformation about marijuana out there, due to 
efforts by some to desensitize society to the harms and risks of this 
illegal substance. Marijuana is not only harmful, but addictive and 
potentially deadly. It is not a medicine in its smoked form - and 
hey, if you don't believe it, ask the Food and Drug Administration. 
It is scientifically proven to lead to the use of harder drugs. Read 
on about the issues and arm yourself with the truth about marijuana.

Is Marijuana Harmful

One of the most difficult challenges facing parents today is 
discussing alcohol, tobacco and drug use with an adolescent son or 
daughter. Most adults were teenagers themselves during the 1970s, 80s 
and 90s, a time when drug experimentation could be dismissed as a 
rite of passage to adulthood. But times have changed. Marijuana today 
is 15 to 25 times more potent than the pot smoked 30 or 40 years ago.

According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, average THC 
(the psychoactive component in marijuana) levels rose from less than 
1 percent in the mid-1970s to more than 6 percent in 2002. Sinsemilla 
(highly potent form of marijuana obtained from unpollinated female 
plants) potency increased in the past two decades from 6 percent to 
more than 13 percent, with some samples containing THC levels of up 
to 33 percent.

Research shows that recurrent or frequent use of this drug suppresses 
the immune system, damages brain cells and decreases short-term 
memory, attention span and motivation. Low levels of THC make the 
user feel relaxed, silly and sleepy. Higher amounts may cause mild 
sensory distortions, an altered sense of time, loss of short-term 
memory, loss of balance and difficulty in completing thought 
processes. Extremely high amounts may result in anxiety, panic, 
hallucinations, delusions and paranoia.

Physical effects may include an increase in heart rate, tightness of 
the chest, difficulty breathing, lack of muscle coordination and 
reddened eyes. Chronic smokers are susceptible to significant 
respiratory problems including recurring chest cold, bronchitis, 
emphysema, asthma and potentially lung cancer.

Marijuana affects necessary skills for safe driving. Marijuana 
affects alertness, the ability to concentrate, coordination and 
reaction time. It also makes it difficult to judge distances and 
react to signals and signs on the road.

According to the National Institutes of Health, someone who smokes 
five joints per week may be taking in as many cancer-causing 
chemicals as someone who smokes a full pack of cigarettes per day. 
Smoking one marijuana cigarette deposits about four times as much tar 
into the lungs as a filtered tobacco cigarette.

In all, marijuana contains more than 400 chemicals including tar and 
other cancer-causing agents. It also contains some of alcohol's 
depressant properties and similarly damages the central nervous 
system, causing neurological and psychological abnormalities.

Finally, marijuana is called a "gateway" drug. Among marijuana's most 
harmful consequences is its role in leading to the use of other, 
harder drugs. Long-term studies of students who use drugs show that 
very few young people use other illegal drugs without first trying 
marijuana. Not everyone who uses marijuana will move on to other 
drugs, but using marijuana sometimes lowers inhibitions about drug 
use and exposes users to a culture that encourages experimentation 
and use of other drugs. Marijuana users are two to five times more 
likely to go on to use harder drugs.

Hopefully this will give readers new information and can help answer 
questions about marijuana's physical harm, addiction and long-term effects.

For more information, visit http://captus.samhsa.gov.

Diane M. Peebles is the prevention coordinator for the Amador County 
Behavioral Health Services, Substance Abuse Division.
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MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman