Pubdate: Mon, 13 Aug 2007 Source: Birmingham News, The (AL) Copyright: 2007 The Birmingham News Contact: http://al.com/birminghamnews/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/45 Author: Loretta Nall FEAR MONGERING REEFER MADNESS Recent studies on the effects of marijuana use have been spreading like some sort of aggressive disease. The first study said smoking even one joint could raise a person's risk of developing schizophrenia later in life by an astronomical 40 percent. However, if one takes the time to look at actual rates of schizophrenia among the entire world population, he will see the rate has always been around 1 percent with no real fluctuation. If the schizophrenia claim were actually true, we would have seen a huge jump in the number of people diagnosed with schizophrenia. The second study claimed a link between marijuana and lung cancer. It said one joint is as bad as five cigarettes. However, Dr. Donald Tashkin, who for many years worked in cahoots with the Drug Enforcement Administration to try to prove this theory, recently released a study that shows smoking marijuana does not cause lung cancer and may even have some preventive effects. This kind of fear mongering about marijuana is true reefer madness. Loretta Nall Alexander City - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake