Myth: Marijuana is More Damaging to the Lungs Than Tobacco. Marijuana smokers are at a high risk of developing lung cancer, bronchitis, and emphysema. Myth: Marijuana Use Impairs the Immune System. Marijuana users are at increased risk of infection, including HIV. AIDS patients are particularly vulnerable to marijuana's immunopathic effects because their immune systems are already suppressed.
Myth: Marijuana's Harms Have Been Proved Scientifically. In the 1960s and 1970s, many people believed that marijuana was harmless. Today we know that marijuana is much more dangerous than previously believed.
http://www.drugpolicy.org/marijuana/factsmyths/
Clearly this one is going to cover a lot of bases.
From the time we enter grade school we as children are told that drugs are bad for us. As we get older the scare tactics get more and more fierce. We've all seen the before and after photos of meth addicts and we've heard about the negative effects drugs have on our bodies. Yes, some drugs are bad for you. I would be stupid to tell you that they are all minimally dangerous. However, not all drugs are as harmful as we are told. unfortunately marijuana has been looped in with harder, far more dangerous, drugs as a harmful substance. Marijuana is in fact not a very harmful substance. Of course, smoking anything is going to be harmful to one's respiratory health. When compared to other substances that are smoked, marijuana is the least harmful. Like tobacco, marijuana smoke contains irritants and carcinogens. These pose the same danger in marijuana as they do in tobacco products however, because marijuana users smoke less than tobacco users to obtain the desired effect, the damage done is far less than that done by tobacco. Because less is needed to be smoked the risk of serious lung damage from smoking marijuana far less than that of tobacco. As for cancer, there have been no incidences of lung cancer solely related to smoking marijuana. In a large study presented to the American Thoracic Society in 2006, even heavy marijuana users showed no signs of an increased risk of lung cancer. Unlike heavy tobacco smokers, heavy marijuana smokers show no obstruction of the lungs airway which indicates that people will not develop emphysema from smoking marijuana.
Now on to the immune system.
There is no evidence that marijuana smokers are more susceptible to infection and disease. Even more silly is the claim that marijuana users are less immune to sexually transmitted disease. Earlier studies that have shown decreased immune functions in cells taken from marijuana users have since been disproved. When given high doses of THC animals show decreased immune function however, these findings do not apply to humans. Marijuana is safe even with people with existing immune issues.
As for the third point, I'm just gonna repost from the website.
"Fact: In 1972, after reviewing the scientific evidence, the National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse concluded that while marijuana was not entirely safe, its dangers had been grossly overstated. Since then, researchers have conducted thousands of studies of humans, animals, and cell cultures. None reveal any findings dramatically different from those described by the National Commission in 1972. In 1995, based on thirty years of scientific research editors of the British medical journal Lancet concluded that "the smoking of cannabis, even long term, is not harmful to health.'"
http://www.drugpolicy.org/marijuana/factsmyths/#immune
All in all marijuana is not harmful to one's health. Although it contains some of the same harmful chemicals as tobacco does, it does not affect respiratory health because it is smoke with less frequency because less is needed to obtain desired effects. It does not decrease immune function nor does it increase risk of sexually transmitted disease.
Myth debunked.
Myth: Marijuana is a Gateway Drug. Even if marijuana itself causes minimal harm, it is a dangerous substance because it leads to the use of "harder drugs" like heroin, LSD, and cocaine.
Fact: Marijuana does not cause people to use hard drugs. What the gateway theory presents as a causal explanation is a statistic association between common and uncommon drugs, an association that changes over time as different drugs increase and decrease in prevalence. Marijuana is the most popular illegal drug in the United States today. Therefore, people who have used less popular drugs such as heroin, cocaine, and LSD, are likely to have also used marijuana. Most marijuana users never use any other illegal drug. Indeed, for the large majority of people, marijuana is a terminus rather than a gateway drug.
http://www.drugpolicy.org/marijuana/factsmyths/#gateway
Statistics show that 75% of all Americans who use marijuana never go on to use harder drugs. the idea of marijuana as a gateway drug comes from blatantly flawed logic. Marijuana is the most popular drug used in America so of course people who use less popular drugs most likely use or have used marijuana at some point. A gateway drug is defined as "A habit-forming substance that may lead to the abuse of drugs that are more addictive and more dangerous". Based on the logic that is used to put marijuana in this category, alcohol and tobacco are also gateway drugs. In fact they should be considered the official gateway drugs seeing as most people partake in drinking alcohol and smoking tobacco even before they decide to smoke marijuana. Any substance used prior to moving on to more dangerous substances is a gateway drug simply because they came first. Really the only way that marijuana can be considered a gateway drug is if it is laced with something such as cocaine and then leads the user to become addicted to cocaine. Of course this threat is avoidable if you buy from legit people and could be elimintaed if marijuana was legal and regulated. If it is being handled and distributed by legitimate sources then there is little to no chance of it being laced.
So is marijuana dangerous as a gateway drug? The answer is no. Marijuana does not directly lead to the use of harder drugs.
Myth debunked.
http://legalizationofmarijuana.com/marijuana-myths.html
Myth: Marijuana is Highly Addictive. Long term marijuana users experience physical dependence and withdrawal, and often need professional drug treatment to break their marijuana habits.
Fact: Most people who smoke marijuana smoke it only occasionally. A small minority of Americans - less than 1 percent - smoke marijuana on a daily basis. An even smaller minority develop a dependence on marijuana. Some people who smoke marijuana heavily and frequently stop without difficulty. Others seek help from drug treatment professionals. Marijuana does not cause physical dependence. If people experience withdrawal symptoms at all, they are remarkably mild.
http://www.drugpolicy.org/marijuana/factsmyths/
As explained above marijuana is not an addictive substance. In fact it is ranked as less addicting than caffiene, a substance used by millions of people legally everyday. While marijauna is constantly used without any consequences regarding addiction, two of the most addicting substances are legal and accessible by the public. In the United States about one in five adults smokes tobacco. Out of all tobacco smokers 70% of them want to quit and about 40% try to quit every year. Out of those who try to quit, about 7% are successfull while vast majority are not able to quit for more than a week. According to the CDC about 64% of American drink alcohol while 50% are regular drinkers. Roughly 13.8 million Americans have drinking problems, including the 8.1 million who fit the criterea for alcoholism. In fact, two-thirds of the population drink alcohol while only 10% of drinkers drink half of all alcohol consumed. These two legal substances have been found to be as addicting as cocaine and heroin, while marijuana remains one of the least addicting substances known. This relatively harmless substance also remains illegal.
Yes, smoking marijuana may be habit forming, however this does not imply that it is addictive. Marijuana is only ever addictive if used frequently and over a prolonged period of time. However, this does not necessarily stem from a physical dependence but a social one. Smoking marijuana is a lifestyle choice. As with any other activity performed on regular basis, it is going to become a habit. When one becomes a habitual marijauna smoker their body does not crave the drug and they function fine with or without it but when one abuses alcohol or tobacco, thier body becomes dependent on thier usage of that drug and they suffer withdrawl symptoms when they try to quit using. It is simply thier drug of choice, like one might choose to smoke cigars or drink scotch. In this sense marijuana is no more addicting than doing pilates before bed or chewing on one's fingernails.
So, is marijuana addictive? Not to the point that is could ever interfere anyone's life, so I'm gonna go with no.
Myth debunked.
http://www.drugpolicy.org/marijuana/factsmyths/
http://legalizationofmarijuana.com/
http://www.alcoholism-statistics.com/facts.php
http://www.myaddiction.com/education/articles/tobacco_statistics.html
When the topic of the legalization of marijuana is brought up there are severl reacurring arguments against it. In my Free the Weed series I will address and debunk these myths one by one. My goal in this is to educate you on the true facts behind marijuana use and hopefully change the minds of those who falsely campaign against its legalization.
-Maya
Prop 203 in Arizona
Hey everyone! This is my first post on my new blog here. I just decided to do this because I have a lot of ideas and things to say about a lot of stuff. I plan to post a lot of different things on here, basically whatever pops into my head. I plan to include writings on social issues, creative writing and much more. This is pretty much a forum for me to speak my mind and share my ideas. I'm very new to this so please bear with me as I work out the kinks and figure this whole thing out. I'm looking foward to sharing with everyone!
I hope you enjoy my blog!
-Maya
