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Cannabis / Marijuana / 'Pot'Marijuana

Once described as a 'soft' drug, cannabis has now been decisively exposed as a HARMFUL drug. It is associated with a range of medical problems, including cancer, psychosis and mental health problems and addiction.

The THC in current cannabis is far more potent than that found in the drug in the 1960s.

The best advice - DO NOT TAKE IT!

This page contain research, studies and media reports about the the use of cannabis and its adverse effects on the body and mind.

Risks - Medical Reports and Research Studies

National Institute on Drug Use - USA
NIDA InfoFacts: Marijuana
Official document produced by National Institutes of Health - National Institute on Drug Abuse - USA.
Lists adverse effects from marijuana use such as "distorted perception, impaired coordination, difficulty in thinking and problem solving, and problems with learning and memory".
Highlights association with mental illness - "increased rates of anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation, and schizophrenia" - though it says "it not clear whether marijuana use causes mental problems, exacerbates them, or is used in attempt to self-medicate symptoms already in existence". 

Australia - AMA - Take a closer look: Cannabis and your health 2008
The Australian Medical Association launched a brochure in 2008 about the health risks associated with cannabis or marijuana use.
The brochure: Take a closer look: Cannabis and your health 2008 
Their media release gives information on use and effects. They say "Nearly 13 per cent of 14 to 19-year-olds (221,700 young people) had used cannabis in the last 12 months."
The brochure includes "information on the effects of short-term use of cannabis in small and large doses, long-term use, smoking cannabis during pregnancy, how long the effects last, psychological dependence and driving or operating machinery under the influence of the drug".

Medical Research Council, UK
Cannabis use increases cancer risk, study suggests
Medical Research Council, UK.
A new study published by MRC-funded researchers has found "convincing evidence" that cannabis smoke damages DNA in ways that could potentially increase the risk of cancer development in humans.... Scientists using a highly sensitive liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry method discovered the smoking of 3-4 cannabis cigarettes a day would cause the same degree of damage to bronchial mucus membranes as 20 or more tobacco cigarettes a day...."

Drug Advisory Council of Australia
Cannabis - Link to wide range of articles documenting the medical research about the adverse consequences from using cannabis.

Statistics - use of cannabis

In Australia
The National Drugs Campaign, run by the federal government, states on their 'Facts on Illicit Drugs' page that:
"In 2007, 38.1 per cent of Australians aged over 14 years had used an illicit drug at some time in their lives and 13.4 per cent had used illicit drugs in the previous 12 months"
and "In 2007, 20 per cent of adolescents aged 14 to19 years had tried cannabis". (Source: National Drug Strategy Household Survey, 2007)

Regarding cannabis use, they state:
"In 2007, 33.5 per cent of the population aged 14 years and over had used cannabis at least once in their lifetime, with 9.1 per cent using it in the preceding 12 months. Adolescents aged 14 to19 years are more likely to have ever tried cannabis (20 per cent) than tobacco (12.1 per cent)."

 

Media reports:

3 April 2007: Drugs - Cannabis
Liberal UK newspaper The Independent reverses its position on marijuana! After campaigning FOR the decriminalisation of marijuana since 1997, they now say there are TOO MANY DANGERS! They have abandoned their campaign!

Cannabis An apology
By Jonathan Owen, The Independent on Sunday, UK, 18 March 2007.
"In 1997, this newspaper launched a campaign to decriminalise the drug. If only we had known then what we can reveal today..."
"Record numbers of teenagers are requiring drug treatment as a result of smoking skunk, the highly potent cannabis strain that is 25 times stronger than resin sold a decade ago.
"More than 22,000 people were treated last year for cannabis addiction - and almost half of those affected were under 18. With doctors and drugs experts warning that skunk can be as damaging as cocaine and heroin, leading to mental health problems and psychosis for thousands of teenagers, The Independent on Sunday has today reversed its landmark campaign for cannabis use to be decriminalised....."

Click here for Lifesite comment and report.

February 2009 - Risk factors in cannabis use
Cannabis and the risks: facts you need to know
Dr Mark Porter, Times Online, February 14, 2009.
"I used to have fairly liberal views on cannabis and have compared it favourably in the past with alcohol and tobacco, both of which exact a bigger toll on our society than all illegal drugs combined. But, along with most doctors, I have become increasingly concerned in recent years that the drug is much more dangerous than we thought, and certainly nowhere near as safe as most teenagers still think. . ."