Marijuana

My hopes of doing this research project were to specifically determine what effects

marijuana in combination with different substances had on the body. I also decided to determine

the differences between marijuana and tobacco, due to the high misconceptions about both of

them in society today.

First of all, I had begun to due research specifically on the subject "should marijuana

be legalized" but due to the lack of information, I had to broaden my topic. I now understand

which one is more dangerous and, for the most part, the long term affects. Through both animal

and human testings, it has been proven that marijuana impairs lung functions to a greater extent

than tobacco cigarettes do. But, this does not necessarily mean that marijuana users are putting

themselves at more risk . Actually, a typical marijuana user will smoke it maybe two times a

day, whereas a typical tobacco-user will smoke between forty and sixty cigarettes in the same

period. Now, the effects of the two have changed roles. Marijuana may have more tar in it, but at

the usage rate in society today, tobacco-users put themselves at a much larger risks. Also, there is

a chemical called benzopyrene that is 70% more abundant in marijuana than tobacco. This

chemical is believed to cause and produce cancer. Tobacco has the same dangerous chemicals in

it, yet the main one that it lacks that marijuana has is THC. THC, more specifically known as

delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, is the drug that produces the "high" feeling that so many marijuana

users become accustomed to. Marijuana usually does not contain more than 1 percent of THC.

There are stronger drugs related to THC, such as "hash oil", which can contain up to a 28 percent

THC level. There have been some cases where "street" marijuana has been found to contain up to

5 percent THC content. That is very potent for normal marijuana, and is probably very hard to

come by in the United States. Other countries seem to use different forms of THC related drugs

such as hashish, and hemp. Both of these contain more THC than marijuana. As far as long term

effects of tobacco and marijuana go, they are about the same. Cancer should appear in the lungs

of a tobacco-user earlier due to the amount the tobacco-user smokes in relation to a normal

marijuana smoker. There have been many assumptions that marijuana will cause long term brain

damage and so on, but, clinically, none of this has ever been proven. In fact, in a college survey,

the students who use the drug regularly possessed a higher GPA than those who do not use. This

is an entire different subject, but it was interesting to learn.

Both tobacco and marijuana contain tar. Marijuana contains a little more and will

actually "feel" heavier on the lungs after smoking. Tar has been found to produce tumors on the

skin of animals that it is applied to. Cancer has definitely been related to smoking and is the

largest killer in the United States today. Thus, marijuana contains more of the dangerous cancer

causing chemicals than tobacco does. Although this would constitute marijuana as being more

"dangerous," in the society we live in today and the amount of tobacco that tobacco-users

consume, this belief is on the contrary. Due to the smaller frequency use of product by marijuana-

users, tobacco has definitely been proven the "killer" in today's society. Additionally, one of the

predominant mixes of today is the use of both marijuana and alcohol in combination. Alcohol has

already proven to be a "lethal" drug, especially when driving, but together with marijuana, the

effects are much greater than either drug alone.

As in a comparison between both of them, alcohol has many more damages to the human

body and mental psyche than marijuana. Both drugs can become dependent upon, and the effects

can be life destroying. Alcohol, as a physical harm places stress upon the body that could make it

react by not eating. Alcohol depletes the body of certain vitamins and minerals, causing an

unsteady diet. It also wreaks havoc on the bowel movements! As far as marijuana goes, there

may be a little redness in the eyes and gaining in weight. The gaining in weight is due to the

conception of the "munchies" as many marijuana smokers experience after usage of the drug.

Reasons for both