Is marijuana a gateway drug? Marijuana is a natural substance from the Cannaceae family and contains the psychoactive ingredient tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC for short. It creates a short-term euphoric effect along with longer-lasting pain relief and mood-enhancing properties. For some people, smoking marijuana can lead to other drugs if they are not getting the help …
While marijuana can’t cause fatal overdoses, ingesting large amounts can cause symptoms like anxiety and psychosis. Marijuana causes relaxing and calming emotions, as well as intoxication. Intoxication can impair your judgment and coordination, as well as cause negative emotions, like paranoia. THC is responsible for many of the mood-altering effects you experience when using marijuana. …
Marijuana is more controversial than ever these days. With legalization for medical use in more than 20 states and legalization for recreational use in two, the drug continues to be the subject for debate. One of the hot topics is addiction. Some people claim that marijuana is not addictive, but most experts know better. While …
Synthetic marijuana is one of the best-known “designer drugs” on the market, and despite legal efforts to curb its use, it’s still a big public health problem. The dirty secret about synthetic marijuana (otherwise known as Spice, K2, Yucatan Fire, JWH-018 and other names) is that it’s nothing like marijuana. With symptoms ranging from agitation …
6 Reasons Synthetic Marijuana Is More Toxic Than Pot Read More »
Anyone who uses marijuana has a significant chance of developing a diagnosable case of marijuana addiction (known technically as cannabis use disorder). As a rule, the risks for addiction rise sharply in people who use the drug every day or almost every day. In a study scheduled for publication in October 2014 in the journal …
What Are the Key Characteristics of Daily Marijuana Users? Read More »
If you’re having a hard time keeping up with the many street names for common illegal drugs, you’re not alone. After all, they were created to confuse, divert and otherwise dodge the suspicions of law enforcement, parents and teachers. Some street names have entered the common vocabulary, while countless others remain obscure. Even so, a …
All around the United States, policies and public opinion surrounding marijuana are shifting. To date, 22 states allow medical marijuana use, six states have medical marijuana laws pending legislation, and two states, Washington and Colorado, have legalized it outright. However, this substance is still illegal according to federal law, and many employers in these states …
Can You Lose Your Job for Smoking Legal Marijuana? Read More »
When you come across the term ‘drug abuser,’ chances are that you immediately think of people who use drugs as a matter of circumstance. As recently as 2008, epidemiological studies have shown that the rate of drug abuse is higher among certain groups, which includes people with lower socioeconomic status. Other risk factors in the …
A Functional Abuser: Why Successful People Abuse Drugs Read More »
Marijuana use is on the rise, according to data from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Perceptions that marijuana is a harmless drug are also on the rise, despite increasing evidence that shows an association between marijuana and dangerous side effects such as psychosis. A recent study conducted at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center provides …
Marijuana is perhaps the most widely used illegal drug in the world. It has been used for a wide variety of purposes for thousands of years and in many different cultures. The plant itself is used for everything from clothing to paper. Today, marijuana as a drug form is primarily used recreationally. However, it is …