The term, hallucinogenic, refers to a group of drugs that can affect the mind, causing visions and hallucinations. They are sometimes referred to as consciousness-expending drugs. Some can have comparatively mild effects, but others can precipitate a psychotic state. Hallucinogenic drugs range from marihuana to lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD).
Marihuana
Few issues have stirred as much controversy as marihuana has. It becomes obvious even to the casual observer that more was involved in the issue than the pharmacological effects of the drug. Some people feel it is a relatively harmless psychoactive drug if used in moderation. Other people disagree and are concerned about the long-term effects of regular use.
Federal law added to the controversy and confusion when it inappropriately categorized marihuana some 35 years ago as a narcotic. This equated it in the minds of many with a drug as dangerous as heroin for example. Many adults responded with great concern for the young using such a drug.
There were other adults for whom marihuana spelled rebellion and a serious personal and societal threat.
The range of strength of marihuana is considerable. It is comparable to alcoholic beverages?from beer to hard liquor. The active ingredient in marihuana is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). The amount of THC determines the potency of the marihuana. Because of improved cultivation, the THC levels in marihuana have increased. Drug experts have viewed this with some alarm because in 1975 marihuana contained 0.4 percent of the chemical THC whereas currently the levels have increased to 4 to 7 percent. This is at least a tenfold increase in potency and would be comparable to changing the alcohol levels in beer to that of straight whiskey. The person, then, who drank two cans of beer, would suddenly experience the effects of having consumed a fifth of whiskey. The unannounced increase in the THC potency of marihuana represents an immediate concern for the user. However, the long-term concerns are that the THC in marihuana is fat soluble and is broken down and removed from the body more readily.
Most of the marihuana entering the country comes from Mexico and South America although the plant is grown in the United States. Marihuana is usually smoked in the form of cigarettes, causing degrees of intoxication. It creates feelings of pleasant drowsiness, visual distortion, and greater suggestibility. Persons may also believe they are experiencing increased sexual desire. The latter is considered to be related to the drug?s lowering of inhibition. In other instances, the drug may cause nervousness and anxiety.
It has been noted that marihuana will adversely affect intelligence test scores, reaction time, and visual and time perception. A person under the influence of marihuana, a person under the influence of marihuana, therefore, should not drive a car or any other vehicle. It also causes a reddening of the eyes. Because this is a means of identifying the marihuana smoker, dark glasses have often been used to hide this reaction. There have been instances were persons developed pink eye, an infection of the eye, and found themselves in more difficulty than anticipated. Current research also indicates that marihuana apparently does not affect hearing acuity, memory, verbal, or musical abilities. Those who have studied the effects of tobacco in terms of the broad scale incidence of emphysema and lung cancer predict that chronic smoking that involves inhalation will inevitably cause damage to sensitive lung tissue. They feel that this may be particularly true as related to the enforced inhalations of the marihuana smoker.
Although marihuana is not physically addicting, it can be psychologically addicting for some. It is not so much the drug that has this property as it is the personality that seeks and needs a chemical escape. At the present time, there are some 9 million people who have used alcohol and ensuing alcoholism as an escape from their problems. The fear is that broad-scale unrestricted use of marihuana will exact a societal price in the form of 9 million potheads.
The steppingstone theory has been one idea that has persisted in the minds of some people who believe that marihuana leads to the use of harder drugs. Pharmacologically, there is nothing in marihuana that would lead to heroin use. It may be that those who seek chemical solutions to personal problems are unsatisfied with marihuana and, thus, seek out harder drugs. One positive correlation that does exist is that those buying marihuana are in contact with the illegal drug market, which has harder drugs as part of its wares.
Current research is attempting to find out if marihuana can change body chromosomes, with a resultant effect on the children born to users. It is also trying to determine if marihuana causes lowered resistance to disease and what may be the serious consequences of long-term use.
Marihuana can raise that heart rate by as much as 50 percent, which is even greater than the effect of tobacco. This would of course be of immediate concern to those with poor heart function. The effect on healthy individuals awaits long term research.
A number of studies, but not all, have shown that marihuana can lower the level of the male sex hormone (testosterone) in the blood. Abnormal sperm movement and shapes as well as reduced sperm count have also been identified with marihuana use.
Preliminary studies suggest that marihuana effects the menstrual cycle in 40 percent of the women who smoked it at least four times a week. Infertility is a possible effect. The levels of female sex hormones were also found to be reduced by marihuana use.
Because marihuana can cross the membranes of the placenta, pregnant, monkeys given THC has a much higher incidence of spontaneous abortions or the delivery of dead babies. The implications of the above will be documented by human studies among marihuana users.
Finally, evidence from animal and human studies indicates that marihuana may damage the body?s basic defenses against disease. Long term studies are needed to document the illness rates of marihuana users as compared to nonusers.
It will probably take 20 years or more before the necessary studies are done to determine the short and long term effects of marihuana. In view of the fact that younger and younger children are becoming involved with marihuana, studies related to long term effects become particularly important. It took half a century to document the harmful effects of tobacco, yet, in spite of overwhelming evidence those habituated or addicted to nicotine and the uniformed continue to smoke with inevitable harmful consequences.
Dr. Sidney Cohen, a nationally respected drug expert at the University of California, once referred to marihuana as a trivial weed, and Dr. Robert Du-Pont, former director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, lobbied for the legalization of marihuana. Both now reflect much more cautious views on marihuana. In view of their changing opinions, it would be wise to follow the results of developing research and what it tells us with regard to continued marihuana use.
Who Quits and Why: Although the often hot exchange about the health effects of marihuana continues, a look at the former users of marihuana reveals that physical health effects were not reasons for quitting. Former users complain that they decided to quit smoking marihuana. Some experienced difficulty quitting because of the habit forming nature of marihuana use. ? ? ? ? ? ?
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Category: Mind-Alternating Drugs
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