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Psychological effects of marijuana use
Harmful effects of marijuana essay
Psychological effects of marijuana use
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Cannabis and Sleep
Cholthon Klingosum
24388067
MCELLBI C62
Keven Laboy Cannabis and Sleep Cannabis, popularized by its dried and leafy counterpart called marijuana, has been used for thousands of years in various regions of the world ranging from Asia to South America for its psychoactive and medicinal properties. It has become a popular recreational drug all over the world, second only to alcohol. It is believed that “over 100 million Americans have tried Cannabis, with 25 million Americans having used it within the past year” (Norml 2013). The main chemicals in Cannabis are cannabinoids which activate the cannabinoid receptors in the central nervous system. The primary cannabinoids responsible for the characteristic effects of marijuana are THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, which is primarily liable for the effects of relaxation, euphoria, shift in perception, and increased anxiety or paranoia. In addition to the commonly known side effects, one interesting consequence of using marijuana is its effects on sleeping behavior and quality of sleep.
Even though many marijuana users self-report having an easier time going to sleep and having a more fulfilling rest after consumption of marijuana via smoking, researches have indicated that marijuana has the opposite effect. Marijuana actually decreases sleep quality as opposed to increasing it and further leads to disturbances in sleep patterns. Abnormal sleep patterns caused by marijuana may remain up to five days after initial use and normal sleep patterns may not return until at least one week has passed. If used chronically, sleep has shown to be disturbed on an ongoing basis unless, even if user faced long term abstinence. The usage of Cannabis also leads to a unstable sleeping behaviours during the night and users generally experience less REM, or rapid eye movement, sleep and SWS, or slow wave sleep (Washington
After smoking, or consuming marijuana, it is distributed in the brain. The concentration of marijuana in the brain may be governed by an active transport process in the choroid plexus network of blood vessels in the brain which regulates intraventricular pressure by absorption and secretion of cerebro spinal fluid. one scientific experiment it gave an example of how the distribution of marijuana in the central nervous system could effect man. At a high dose of 30 mg./kg. marked sedation and pronounced motor incoordination peaked at the one hour interval subsiding in 8 hours when over reaction occurred to external stimuli; man reveals incapacitation of cognitive and motor function. High concentrations of marijuana are usually found in the following parts of the brain: the frontal cortex (the general association area), and hippocampus (short term memory and oreintation). As a result, perception of time, mood and general cordination is impaired. It is apparent that marijuana intoxication effects the neurological functions and usually disappears in 24 hours, but can become a permanent malfunction.THC effec...
Marijuana is a drug that is harmful to a person¡¯s health. It has been found to have adverse impacts on one¡¯s mental processes such as memory, attention, judgement, and problem- solving (Butcher, Mineka, Hooley, 2004, p.415). Also, marijuana can interfere with a person¡¯s ability to think rationally and logically. Thus, the lapse in judgement caused by the drug use can lead to risky sexual behaviours and this may result in increasing sexually transmitted disease such as AIDS. Moreover, the long-term use of marijuana may cause chronic breathing problems and cancer ...
First of all, some people feel smoking marijuana can get hyper, which providing them the emotion of happiness, and helping them to see the world from a different perspective. However, marijuana will cause a lot of healthy problems to human’s body. Marijuana has many physical effects on human such as rapid heart rate, red eyes and dry mouth. Because the chemical THC will enter into the body when people are smoking it, THC will enter through the bloodstream to the brain. The chemical affects them to feel ecstasy and unreality; therefore, THC will make them feel more confused if people smoke marijuana for a long time. According to, “ Treat marijuana abuse like a health problem” (McMillan, 2007, July 17), it shows using marijuana can cause more serious health issues on human’s body such as bronchitis, emphysema, and cancer. In addition, using marijuana has also been linked to lung damage and affects the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. For example, if marijuana ...
The Physiological Effects of Marijuana Marijuana derives from the dried leaves and flower of the hemp plant Cannabis sativa; for thousands of years, physicians regarded marijuana as a useful pharmaceutical agent that could be used to treat a number of different disorders. In the 19th century, physicians in the United States and Europe used marijuana as an analgesic, as a treatment for migraine headaches, and as an anticonvulsant (Grinspoon & Bakalar, 1993, 1995). In 1938, a physician used marijuana (hashish) to completely control the terror and excitement of a patient who had contracted rabies (Elliot, 1992, p. 600).
Marijuana while illegal on a federal level has been legalized in 18 states and the District of Columbia for medical use and also for personal use for anyone over 21 in Washington and Colorado. 48% of Americans admit to using marijuana according to a 2013 survey conducted by Scientific America. With the change in public opinion concerning marijuana the need to understand the effect and consequences associated with its use are vitally important. What are the effects on the brain and the rest of the body? Does it matter when you start using marijuana? Also what is the effect marijuana use has on a person’s life, to include school, work, family and friends.
Marijuana tends to be disassociated with the conventional spectrum of drugs in today's society. Certainly we can agree that cocaine, ecstasy, and heroine are drugs and thus highly addictive and dangerous. But can marijuana be mentioned in the same breath as these drugs? It is not my point nor belief to disagree that marijuana is a drug that can be addictive. I place strong emphasis however on the fact that physical dependency is not nearly as common as psychological dependency among marijuana users.
Marijuana has the reputation of giving users a high when smoked, eaten, or inhaled through vaporization. The chemical that causes the feeling of euphoria is called Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). When smoked or ingested, the THC rapidly passes through your lungs or stomach, then your bloodstream, and to other organs in your body. When it finally reaches your brain, the THC targets specific brain cells called cannabinoid receptors (Harding, 2013). These receptors are especially found in parts of your brain that control your memory, thinking, pleasure, concentration, perception of time, and coordinated movement. Users will experience alterations with their mood, have difficulty with problem solving, and will definitely have trouble learning and memorizing. These are just a few health issues marijuana can cause to your brain.
The Effects of Marijuana Marijuana is a mood altering or psychoactive drug that has many nicknames, such as pot, weed, ganja, sensi, herb, and. others. The. It is an ancient drug that dates back to hundreds of years to the Asia. Many cultures have used it during meditation, religious.
The effects of marijuana are minimal. The high has a feeling of euphoria, peacefulness and well-being. Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the active chemical in marijuana. It’s estimated that a person would have to ingest a dose 20,000 to 40,000 times the average dose before death would occur. In the early 1990’s sophisticated research on marijuana began. The scientists discovered THC stimulates special receptors in the brain. Researchers have now isolated a natural substance that appears to produce the same effects as THC in the brain. Recently the medical uses of marijuana are being more and more accepted, and many marijuana smokers wonder how it can be harmful if it helps/treats patients.
“Considerable anecdotal evidence suggests that marijuana may be effective in treating a number of medical conditions… such as chemotherapy-induced nausea, wasting and anorexia associated with AIDS” (Joffe and Yancy). Marijuana can help treat this conditions, but there are also other people who use marijuana as a medicine for others circumstances. For example, people use marijuana to sleep, because some people have difficulties to sleep in the night and they need this product to rest their body. Also, those people who could only sleep a few hours use marijuana to help them sleep more hours. Some individuals use marijuana for problems of rheumatism, they mixed marijuana with alcohol to pain relive. Moreover people say that the results with this product is beneficially for adults. People sometimes use marijuana to relaxing his bodies. For example, there are a number of people who stress in work and use it for relaxing at home. However, marijuana should not be legalized because using it as medicine can result in negative consequences. “While proponents assert marijuana’s usefulness in treating a variety of medical conditions, opponents counter that the drugs has never been proven effective and the new laws open the door to abuse” (Peron). Those who use marijuana to sleep can have serious problems because if they use this drug every day to sleep their body will became used to receiving this medication daily. Thus, their body will never rest unless they take in drugs to help them sleep and eventually they will become addicted. Therefore, those who believe that marijuana should be legalized need to rethink the severe consequences that using it as a medicine will cause. People are using marijuana as a medication because it is an excuse to take in drug. For those reasons, it will be more beneficial if marijuana stays
Marijuana has many bad side effects that harm the body. According to Szara Braude, marijuana slows down reactions causing problems with memory and learning, distorted perception, difficulty in thinking, and loss of coordination (Marijuana as a medicine 53). Many people use this drug not knowing wh...
Medically, marijuana has proven to be a productive drug. Studies show marijuana has helped dealing with “pain, muscle spasms, seizure disorders and nausea from cancer chemotherapy.” (Weir) Scientist believes these benefits come from a chemical compound in marijuana called cannabidiol. This chemical is not the active chemical that gives marijuana users the mind-altering effects. With the unce...
THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, is the chemical responsible for most of marijuana’s psychological effects. It acts much like the cannabinoid chemicals made naturally by the body. Cannabinoid receptors are concentrated in certain areas of the brain associated with thinking, memory, pleasure, coordination, and time perception. THC attaches to these receptors and activates them and affect’s a person’s memory, pleasure, movements, thinking, concentration, coordination, and sensory and time perception. The main benefit is the pleasure it brings. Not only is it enormously relaxing, but can greatly enhance the pleasure of sensory activities, such as eating, listening to music, and having sex.
A considerable amount of literature has been published on cannabis specifically marijuana. These studies classify marijuana into three species: Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and cannabis ruderalis. In fact, Cannabis sativa is the most widely used and recognized among the other species due to its ability to produce more fiber and oil. For many years, the plant has been used for making clothes as well as lighting and soap. Nevertheless, cannabis is widely used at the present time for intoxication and medical treatments. Marijuana is usually extracted from the flowers of the female plant (Grinspoon & Bakalar, 1993). According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, marijuana is well-defined as the “dried leaves, flowers, stems, and seeds from the hemp plant Cannabis sativa, which contains the psychoactive (mind-altering) chemical delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), as well as other related compounds. This plant material can also be concentrated in a resin called hashish” (NIDA, 2014).