The pros and cons of marijuana smoking

(This post is by Danielle)

I have always heard that smoking marijuana is bad for you, yet some doctors prescribe patients marijuana for many medical reasons. I have done the research and found that there are many pros and cons to smoking marijuana. On the negative side, studies have shown that smoking marijuana can damage your brain, heart, lungs and immune system. It slows down learning and interferes with memory, awareness, and judgment. Smoking marijuana increases your risks of getting cancer because it puts cancer-causing compounds into your body, though evidence clearly shows that marijuana has been accepted as a relief to the distress of ill people, when used in a safe way under medical supervision. Researchers also say marijuana can relieve certain types of pain, nausea, vomiting and other symptoms caused by illnesses like multiple sclerosis, cancer and AIDS or by the harsh drugs sometimes used to treat them. Marijuana is less toxic than many of the drugs that physicians prescribe every day. Although people do believe that marijuana is a dangerous drug and that there are less dangerous medicines offering the same relief from pain and other medical symptoms. Another down side that comes along with smoking marijuana is the withdrawal effects that are similar to studies of nicotine withdrawal symptoms, such as craving for marijuana, sleep difficulty, and weight loss. It also affects your mental state of mind, causing some to suffer with aggression, anger, irritability, and strange dreams. Research also says unlike nicotine, alcohol and hard drugs, there are no clearly defined withdrawal symptoms when you stop using marijuana. Lester Grinspoon, an Emeritus Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School states that "There is very little evidence that smoking marijuana as a means of taking it represents a significant health risk. Although cannabis has been smoked widely in Western countries for more than four decades, there have been no reported cases of lung cancer or emphysema attributed to marijuana. I suspect that a day's breathing in any city with poor air quality poses more of a threat than inhaling a day's dose -- which for many ailments is just a portion of a joint -- of marijuana."

Researcher Andrew Morral says “The people who are predisposed to use drugs and have the opportunity to use drugs are more likely than others to use both marijuana and harder drugs. Marijuana typically comes first because it is more available.” Meaning that some people can be in an environment where marijuana is very commonly used and abused and these people would be  more likely to smoke marijuana than others that are not exposed as much thus, giving them a greater motivation to do other drugs harsher than marijuana. On the other hand the SAMHSA (substance abuse and mental health services administration) says that “increases in the likelihood of cocaine and heroin use and drug dependence are also apparent for those who initiate use of marijuana at any later age” meaning that people that abuse the drug of marijuana in any way are more likely to do harsher drugs like cocaine and heroin at a later age. What do you think?