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MARIJUANA
USE
Marijuana, is any of
several different species of mildly hallucinogenic
plants whose main active ingredient is
delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. Cannabis is
a member of the family Cannabinaceae, in the order
Rosales. It grows in most climates. The tough
fiber of the cannabis plant is known as hemp and
has various uses, including the manufacture of
cloth, rope, and paper.
Effects of
Marijuana Use
Cannabis is
psychoactive, meaning it affects the mind and/or
behaviour. Its main effects include a
"mellow" good feeling as well as
giggling, and the frequent short-term side-effect
of increased appetite (the "munchies").
Larger doses can cause an increased perception of
sight and sound, eventually leading to mild
hallucination, usually auditory.
Other effects
include paranoia, short-term memory loss, and
nausea, especially if used in combination with
alcohol.
No overdose due
to cannabis has ever been recorded in two
millennia of medical history. The estimated lethal
dose of cannabis is 20,000 to 40,000 times the
level of a normal dose. In comparison, most
prescribed drugs have a lethal dose around 10
times the normal dose.
Although a mild
tolerance of the drug can be built up, it is
generally not thought to be addictive. However
some people can build up a psychological
dependence. There is some evidence linking
long-term use to depression as well as aggravation
of pre-existing mental conditions.
The long-term
effects of cannabis still need more study. One of
the most important and widely shared concerns
regarding cannabis is that its high tar content
(especially when it is combined with tobacco, as
is common in Great Britain) could lead to an
increased risk of lung cancer.
Medical
Marijuana Use
Medical
uses of marijuana for a variety of conditions are
currently being investigated. Anecdotal evidence
reports that it has beneficial effects relieving
the nausea of chemotherapy and AIDS treatment, its
appetite-stimulating effect helping combat
wasting. It may also help reduce fluid pressure in
the eyes associated with glaucoma. Numerous
studies have shown that it can help reduce the
pain and tremors of multiple sclerosis.
Medical marijuana
is also being tested in Britain as a form of
natural pain-killer for use by patients with
severe intractible pain from spinal or other major
injuries. The studies have used a self-adminstered
spray form of cannabis extract, and one of their
aims has been to find the optimal dosage to gain
medicinal benefits without the 'high' normally
associated with marijuana use. Some patients in
the British study have reported remarkable success
with the treatment, while it has been ineffective
for others.
Marijuana History
The use of
cannabis is thought to go back at least 5000
years. Neolithic archaeology grounds in China
include cannabis seeds and plants. The first known
mention of cannabis was in a Chinese medical text
of 2737BC. It was used as medicine throughout Asia
and the Middle East to treat a variety of
conditions. In India particularly, cannabis was
associated with Shiva.
Cannabis was well
known to the Scythians. Germans have grown hemp
for its fibres--used to make nautical ropes and
material for clothes--since ancient times. In the
Elbing Prussian vocabulary from around 1350, hemp
is recorded as knapis (derived from cannabis).
Large fields of hemp along the banks of the Rhine
are featured in 19th-century copper etchings. The
hemp plant has to be soaked to harvest the fibre.
This liquid was used as a drink. In today's
Germany there are bars that serve hemp beer and
hemp wine (edit: while this may be true those
drinks will not contain any THC because as a drug
cannabis is still outlawed in germany and only
so-called "industrial hemp" that doesn't
contain any THC may be grown for production of
fibers and said drinks).
Cannabis was used
medicinally in the western world (usually as a
tincture) around the middle of the 19th century.
It was famously used to treat Queen Victoria's
menstrual pains, and was available from shops in
the US. By the end of the 19th century its
medicinal use began to fall as other drugs such as
aspirin took over.
It was outlawed
in the USA in the 1930s.
It has a
prominent religious role in the Rastafarian
religion.
Although it has
probably been used as a recreational drug
thoughout its history, it came to prominence in
the jazz scene during the fifties, its use taking
off in the 1960s.
It is now one of
the most widely used illicit drugs in the world.
Recreational Use
N.B. Recreational use is illegal in most
countries, see the next section.
Recreational use
of cannabis has an associated subculture which
starts with the number of names for the drug.
Examples include: "pot",
"dope", "weed",
"reefer", "bhang",
"green", "herb",
"ganja", "sinsemilla",
"grass", "mary jane",
"chronic", "bud" and many
more.
Marijuana comes
in several forms.
Dried buds
(usually the flowering tops of female plants),
known as marijuana. Cannabis resin (hashish) which
is the secretion of the plant, usually dried and
processed onto blocks. Cannabis oil ("honey
oil", "Hash Oil") which is a
concentrate usually involving a solvent based
extraction. It is most commonly smoked, usually in
a "joint" or "spliff": the
dried buds (possibly mixed with tobacco) are
rolled in paper and smoked much like a cigarette.
Other methods
include using pipes or "bongs" (water
pipes) to smoke the cannabis whilst cooling the
smoke down and, in the case of bongs, removing
some of the unwanted impurities/tar. In addition,
a drink called bhang can be prepared. See also
hashish and hashish oil.
Cannabis is also
cooked to make things such as Alice B. Toklas
brownies, "space cake", "pot
pie", and "hash brownies". However,
the effects of ingested cannabis usually do not
take effect for over 30 minutes, making it harder
for users to regulate their consumption.
Another method of
ingestion is vaporization. Vaporization allows the
Cannabis resins (THC and other Cannabinoids) to be
extracted into a vapor by heating without actually
burning the plant material. This is advantageous
because most of the toxic chemicals found in
Cannabis and Tobacco smoke are byproducts of the
combustion process. By heating the Cannabis to
about 190 degrees Celsius, the Cannabis resins are
released into a vapor but the plant material is
not actually burned. This vapor can then be
inhaled and the effects of the drug will be felt
as quickly as if it were smoked. Vaporization is
the perfect option for people who do not like the
dangers associated with smoking.
Cannabis can also
be taken by dissolving it in cups of coffee,
creating a "bhang".
Marijuana andThe Law
Marijuana was
criminalised across most of the world in the early
parts of the 20th centuary. There is some
confusion as to the reasons as there seems to be
different driving forces on either side of the
Atlantic.
In the UK,
cannabis was outlawed in 1928 after Britain became
a signatory to the "International Opium
Convention" which was held in Geneva in 1925.
In the US the key
law seems to be the 1937 Marijuana Tax Act which
was the federal culmination of many separate state
laws that had been enacted in the previous years.
This may have been in response to lobbying by
makers of synthetic fibers that competed with
hemp.
Laws usually
govern distribution, cultivation, and possession
for personal use. Enforcement of the law varies
from country to country. Some notable examples
include the Netherlands, where cannabis is
effectively decriminalised and can be purchased in
licensed "coffee shops".
In many
countries, police exercise their discretionary
powers to caution users or confiscate cannabis for
possession in small quantities that could be
deemed for personal use, especially for medical
reasons.
A recent example
was the declaration by police in Brixton, England,
that they would not arrest people for possession
of cannabis and instead only issue on-the-spot
warnings and confiscate the cannabis. Following
this trial the reclassification of cannabis from
Class B to Class C was recommended by the Home
Secretary in October 2001.
The state of
South Australia and the Australian Capital
Territory have decriminalized possession of small
quantities of cannabis, and growing limited
numbers of plants for personal use; the government
merely charges an on-the-spot fine of A$50. Police
interest in personal usage and non-commercial
growers in the rest of Australia appears to be
limited.
As of early
2000s, Canada and some other countries have stared
to recognize medicinal use of cannabis separately
from "normal" possession.
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