Pubdate: Tue, 07 Jan 2014
Source: Dallas Morning News (TX)
Copyright: 2014 The Dallas Morning News, Inc.
Contact: http://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/send-a-letter/
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Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/117

The Washington Post

HOW SAFE IS POT REALLY?

Its Effects on the Young, Drivers Raise Concerns

On Wednesday, Colorado became the first state to allow legal sales of
marijuana for recreational use. Washington state will do the same
later this year, and other states might follow suit. Here are answers
to some basic questions about marijuana and its effects on the body:

How does marijuana work?

A greenish-gray mixture of leaves, stems, seeds and flowers of the
cannabis plant, marijuana's main active ingredient is
delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. It binds to the surface of nerve
cells in high-density areas of the brain involved in feelings of
pleasure, memory, thinking, concentration, coordination and movement,
and sensory and time perception. THC stimulates this communication
network, resulting in a marijuana high.

What are its medicinal uses?

About 20 states and the District of Columbia allow the use of
marijuana for medical purposes. Most patients are seeking the drug for
controlling pain for medical issues including cancer, nervous system
diseases, glaucoma and migraines. It is also being used to treat
nausea and improve appetites for people with HIV or other chronic illnesses.

What are the health effects of marijuana use?

In the short-term, it can lead to a rapid heart rate, increased blood
pressure, red eyes, dry mouth, increased appetite and slowed reaction
time. Long-term use has been linked to impaired thinking, memory
problems, panic attacks and other psychological issues. There have
also been studies about showing a weakened immune system and, for
those who smoke the drug, impaired lung function.

How much marijuana is safe to use? Can you overdose from
marijuana?

There are no recorded cases of someone dying from an overdose of
marijuana, but it has been a factor in accidents or medical issues
that can lead to death.

The concentration of THC in seized samples of illegal marijuana has
been increasing over the past 30 years, with the average potency more
than doubling since 1998, leading to concern about the consequences on
young users. But scientists don't know much about the effects of
higher concentration on the body and brain.

Is it addictive?

Yes, it can be. Long-term use, especially by those who start at a
young age, has been shown to lead to addiction, with an estimated 1 of
11 people who use it becoming dependent on it. Marijuana was
responsible for 4.5 million of the 7.1 million Americans dependent on
or abusing illicit drugs, according to the 2010 National Survey on
Drug Use and Health published by the Department of Health and Human
Services. Withdrawal symptoms are similar to those of withdrawal from
smoking and include irritability, sleep difficulties and anxiety.

How does marijuana use affect the young?

Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse,
lamented recently on The Diane Rehm Show that legalization of
marijuana in some states could make it easier for kids to access the
drug. That's a serious problem, she said, in part because science has
shown marijuana can have more profound effects in the brains of young
people.

"When you smoke marijuana, you cannot memorize or learn as you should.
And if you are at high school and you need to be educating yourself,
that's going to put you at higher risk for actually doing poorly at
school," Volkow said. "The other issue is that the younger you start
smoking marijuana, the higher the risk not only to becoming addicted
to marijuana, but it also appears to increase the risk for addiction
of other drugs in adulthood."

Volkow added: "What we know about the marijuana, as well as other
drugs, is that the effects of drugs in the human brain are not the
same when you take them as a child, adolescent or as an adult, and
this is because there are significant changes in the brain as we go in
the transition from childhood into adulthood. And our brain continues
to change even as adults, but the largest amount of changes really are
occurring during those developmental stages, which, of course, leads
the brain to function in different ways and respond to stimuli,
including drugs, in different ways."

Volkow's comments are based on mounting evidence. Last year, Canadian
and American researchers reviewed more than 120 studies examining
cannabis and its effects on the teenage brain. They found strong
indications that early marijuana use can alter development and
contribute to mental health problems later in life.

"For me, the question is not about whether cannabis is good or bad,
but who is more likely to suffer from problems in cannabis because we
know for most people that will not happen," Didier Jutras-Aswad, one
of the study's authors and a University of Montreal neuroscience
professor, told the Canadian Broadcasting Corp.

How does marijuana use affect driving?

Studies have shown that smoking marijuana tends to affect spatial
perceptions. Drivers might swerve or follow other cars too closely.
They can lose concentration and have slower reaction times. Such
findings have led some researchers to conclude that driving high
greatly increases the chances for an accident and that smoking pot and
drinking before driving is a particularly dangerous mix. 
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