- Most marijuana users never use any other illegal drug.
- Fewer than 10 percent of people who try marijuana ever become dependent on it.
- Marijuana has not been shown to cause mental illness, but some side effects include feelings of panic, anxiety, and paranoia.
- Use of marijuana can cause dry mouth, nausea, vomiting, dry or red eyes, heart and blood pressure problems, lung problems, numbness, and hallucinations.
- Marijuana may be used to control seizures in some people, but could make seizure disorders worse for others.
- Stop use of marijuana at least 2 weeks before a scheduled surgery to avoid slowing down the central nervous system too much when combined with anesthesia and other medications.
- Marijuana may be effective for improving appetite in people with aids.
- More than 800,000 people are arrested for marijuana violations each year.
- Dutch citizens over 18 are permitted to buy and use cannabis. Marijuana use rates in the Netherlands are similar to those in the US, while for young adults, rates of marijuana use are even lower than in the US.
- Although marijuana’s effects are less harmful than those of most other drugs, it is the most common drug that people are arrested for possessing.
Adapted from the Drug Policy Alliance and Web MD .
With the legalization of marijuana in several states, many concerns have risen over how to deal with drug policy in the US. Some issues that policymakers have to deal with include how to best regulate the production, distribution, sale and use of marijuana for recreational purposes when it is illegal to do so under federal law, how to tax marijuana use, what kinds of quality control standards should be set, what should be done to protect children, who should be allowed to grow marijuana, and many more.
President Obama has said, “it does not make sense, from a prioritization point of view, for us to focus on recreational drug users in a state that has already said that under state law that’s legal.”
The federal government’s approach does not go after those who use the drug for medical purposes, such as cancer patients, but focuses on individuals who are in the marijuana growing, selling, and distribution business.
Of course, there are differing stances on whether the US should legalize marijuana or not. Younger people and people in the West are more supportive of legalization. Many people think that government efforts to enforce marijuana laws are more costly than beneficial. Despite some support, some politicians are wary of legalizing another addictive substance.
For more information on marijuana legalization and marijuana policy, read this article from the Huffington Post!