FREE ESSAY ON MARIJUANA PAPER

MARIJUANA PAPER

Marijuana
Marijuana is an illegal narcotic drug and is a green or gray mixture of dried, shredded
flowers and leaves from the hemp plant Cannabis sativa. It is also known by its many
slang names like pot, weed, Mary Jane, dope and chronic. The main active chemical in
marijuana is THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol). The THC causes a series of cellular
reactions with protein in certain nerve cells that lead to the high the user experiences.
Most of the marijuana used in the United States is brought in illegally from other
countries. It is most commonly smoked as a cigarette or in a pipe or bong. Recently it
has appeared in blunts, which are cigars with the tabacco taken out and the marijuana put
in the leaves. It also is mixed in with foods or brewed as tea.
There are many short-term effects of marijuana. It causes problems with memory and
learning, distorted perception, difficulty in thinking and problem solving, loss of
coordination, and increased heart rate, anxiety, and panic attacks. Marijuana users often
become so devoted to the drug and its effects that they lose interest in any useful or
intellectual occupation. A person who smokes marijuana regularly may have some of the
same respiratory problems as tabacco smokers. These regular users may have a daily cough
and phlegm and more frequent chest colds. The amount of tar inhaled by marijuana smokers
and the level of carbon monoxide absorbed are three to five times greater than among
tobacco smokers. The symptoms and effects become more serious when marijuana is used
daily over a long period of time.
Long term use of marijuana produces changes in the brain similar to those seen after long
term use of other major drugs of abuse, like cocaine and heroin. One of the greatest
dangers of marijuana is that people who use it soon look for stronger drugs, and often
become addicted to heroin. Greater impairment of attention, memory, and processing in the
brain is likely due to an alteration of brain activity produced by marijuana.
Since marijuana is a drug of abuse, babies born to mothers who used it during pregnancy
were smaller than those whose mothers did not use it. Smaller babies are more likely to
develop health problems. Also if a nursing mother is using marijuana they pass THC
through their breast milk to the baby. This can impair the infant's motor development.
Marijuana has all the signs of an addictive drug. It causes compulsive, often
uncontrollable craving, seeking, and use, even though it is unhealthy and has serious
social consequences. After decreasing for over a decade, marijuana use among high school
students began to increase in the early 1990s. Many people believe that it is not
addictive and the drug should be legalized. It is legal in certain medical cases, but not
in many. But because of all the research and proof of its harmful effects if probably
will not be legalized. 
Bibliography
Bibliography
Academic American Encyclopedia. Grolier Incorporated. 1990.
Bach S., Julie. Drug Abuse. Greenhaven Press, Inc. 1988.
Dolan F., Edward. Drugs In Sports. Franklin Watts. 1986.
http://www.nida.nih.gov.MarijBroch.Marijteens.html
Yoslow, Mark. Drugs In The Body. Franklin Watts, Inc. 1992.