Marijuana generally refers to the leaves and flowering buds of the Cannabis plant. It is a psychoactive drug and contains over 400 chemicals. Of them, THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) is the active chemical ingredient that produces short-term harmful effects such as depression, anxiety, distorted perceptions, memory impairment and difficulty in thinking. Marijuana is mostly abused as it gives a feeling of high or euphoria immediately and can last for 1-3 hours.
Marijuana is the most commonly-used illicit drug in America. According the to National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) 2008, about 15.2 million people were using marijuana in US. Initiation or first-time use of marijuana is also high in US.
The same report also states that around 2.2 million persons aged 12 or older used marijuana for the first time in 2008. This shows that there are about 6,000 marijuana initiates per day.
The use of marijuana has some adverse effects, especially on the mind and the body. When somebody smokes marijuana, THC quickly goes from their lungs into the circulatory system, which conveys the destructive concoction to the mind and to different organs all through the body.
The negative effects of marijuana can be classified as fleeting effects and long-haul ones. These symptoms incorporate certain fleeting effects which pass away inside of two or three hours. On the other hand, the long-haul effects can take a terrible toll on different organs of your body. It has even been suggested that there is an unmistakable connection between the general smoking of marijuana and pregnancy issues.
Short-term Effects of Marijuana
The marijuana smoker might encounter a negative impact on his recognition, discourse and memory and he might likewise begin encountering nervousness and fear and freeze. Smoker’s eyes get to be ragged-looking, the throat goes dry and even a heart attack might happen. Mental dependence on the medication may be worsened and the smoker might shed his hindrances, driving him to perform activities unusual to his characteristic conduct.
Long-term Effects of Marijuana
Short-term memory loss
Users smoking weed in the long-run suffer from short-term memory loss. They also suffer from poor word and sentence formation. Their ability to learn and remember information will also be reduced slowly.
Depression
Users will experience depression, chronic anxiety, personality disturbances and psychological disturbances after smoking weed. Marijuana abuse creates more problems in the daily life of the user and makes existing problems worse.
Disorientation
It is one of the effects on the brain for smoking weed. Users will experience an inability to think clearly and be disoriented. Users also feel difficulty in paying attention, making decisions and remembering.
Hallucinations
Smoking weed can cause the paranoia and hallucinations in users. A person’s perception of reality can be distorted by using weed. Users lose the sense of personal recognition and personal identity.
A sense of fear and distrust
Smoking weed can also create the sense of panic and paranoid thinking. Abusing marijuana can cause the inability to rationalize, which leads to fear and distrust in users.
Alters initial behavior
Chemicals of marijuana gets attached to brain’s neurons and affects them by interfering with the normal communication between neurons.
Bronchial asthma
THC, the active chemical in Marijuana, is a fat-soluble substance and it gets collected in fatty tissues of the lungs and other organs. Persistent usage of Marijuana can damage lungs and airways and may result in bronchial asthma.
Impair emotions
Marijuana abuse also affects the emotions of users. He or she gets unreasonable feelings like uncontrollable laughing, etc.
High blood pressure and rapid heart rate
Within a short span of time of smoking weed, the blood pressure and rate of heartbeat will be increased rapidly. The heartbeat will be increased by 20 to 50 beats per minute which can lead to risk of heart attacks in users.
Lung cancer
Smoking marijuana can affect the health adversely. Marijuana smoke contains some toxins, which can cause lung cancer in the long-run.
Respiratory diseases
Marijuana can cause damage to the respiratory organs and other parts of the body. Some ailments like a cough, chest cold, emphysema, blockage of the air passages, bronchitis and bronchitis asthma are caused by smoking marijuana.
Bronchitis
Studies have shown that marijuana contains carcinogens that can act as irritants to the lungs. It has also been reported that Marijuana contains 50 to 70 percent more carcinogenic hydrocarbons than normal tobacco. Generally, marijuana users inhale more deeply and hold their breath longer, which further increases the lungs’ exposure to harmful carcinogenic smoke.
Heart attack and heart diseases
According to studies, the user has the risk of heart attack after the first hour of smoking weed. It can also cause different heart diseases because blood pressure and heart rate will be increased rapidly and the oxygen-carrying capability of blood will be reduced due to smoking marijuana.
Conclusion
These are negative effects of smoking weed. Considering all these negative effects on the brain and other important organs, it is advised that it is better to avoid consumption of this illegal drug. Many people who have smoked weed have already experienced these negative effects. It is important to create awareness of these negative effects of smoking weed to discourage people from abusing it.
You can always find help in giving up weed with online resources, which can help you on your journey to becoming weed-free.
