Cannabis Use and Interaction in the Body and Mind
Any discussion by proponents of medicinal marijuana centers around an opinion that there’s now momentum to legalize it nationally. As with all such subjective opinion, the facts underlying it should be looked at closely. With this in mind, let’s consider what states have legalized medical marijuana and whether there is really any momentum to do this nation wide.
Addictions are generally understood to be a pattern of usage after a while using a substance as well as behavior that is certainly usually associated with increased usage, and negative consequences. If I can’t go every day with out a particular substance and even behavior, very often indicates a difficulty, suggestive of a dependency. I know what you might be saying, “but I only use on weekends.” Well unfortunately, “binging” so to speak, like using cannabis on Friday and Saturday only, won’t take away the “addictive” label.
Those who oppose the use of marijuana for therapeutic or medicinal reasons list several reasons. First and foremost, it’s still classified like a Schedule 1 controlled substance under federal laws. Drugs classified as Schedule 1 include heroin and LSD and thus, are deemed to have no medical value. Opponents also believe for every single ailment that medical cannabis may aid, you can find legal FDA approved products available that the same.
The main chemical in marijuana that causes a sense of high is termed THC. THC travels with the lungs in to the brain where it binds to a particular receptors. This effect provides the sense of being high. The short term effects of marijuana are forgetfulness, changed perception, CBD olie coordination issues, some time and space issues, to call only a few. Long term use may lead to marijuana addiction and accompanying withdrawal symptoms offering irritability, anxiety, stress and drug cravings.
Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive chemical compound found in marijuana, has been found to reduce lung cancer tumor growth by 50 % and significantly slow up the ability in the cancer to spread. This is in accordance with researchers at Harvard University, who studied the consequences of THC on lab rats. Another study, conducted in Madrid, also found that THC destroyed cancerous brain cells while leaving healthy cells alone.