What is marijuana?
Marijuana refers to the dried leaves, flowers, stems, and seeds from the Cannabis sativa or Cannabis Indica plant. The plant contains the mind-altering chemical THC and other similar compounds.Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug in the United States. Its use is widespread among young people. In 2015, more than 11 million young adults ages 18 to 25 used marijuana in the past year. Marijuana has both short-and long-term effects on the brain.
How do people use marijuana?
People smoke marijuana in hand-rolled cigarettes (joints) or in pipes or water pipes. They also smoke it in blunts—emptied cigars that have been partly or completely refilled with marijuana. To avoid inhaling smoke, some people are using vaporizers. These devices pull the active ingredients from the marijuana and collect their vapor in a storage unit.
Short-TermEffects
When a person smokes marijuana, THC quickly passes from the lungs into the bloodstream. The blood carries the chemical to the brain and other organs throughout the body. The amount of THC in marijuana has been increasing steadily over the past few decades. For a person who’s new to marijuana use, this may mean exposure to higher THC levels with a greater chance of a harmful reaction.THC acts on specific brain cell receptors that ordinarily react to natural THC-like chemicals.
Long-Term effects
Marijuana also effects brain development. When people begin using marijuana as teenagers, the drug may impair thinking, memory, and learning functions and affect how the brain builds connections between the areas necessary for these functions. Marijuana cause breathing problems, increased heart rate, and intense Nausea and Vomiting. Mentally it causes temporary hallucinations and temporary paranoia.
How Does Marijuana Affect a Person’s Life?
Those who frequently use large amounts of Marijuana report that it causes low life satisfaction, poor mental health poor physical health, and more relationship problems. People also report less academic and career success. For example, marijuana use is linked to a higher likelihood of dropping out of school. It’s also linked to more job absences, accidents, and injuries.
Can a person overdose on marijuana?
An overdose occurs when a person uses enough of the drug to produce life-threatening symptoms or death. There are no reports of teens or adults dying from marijuana alone. However, some people who use marijuana can feel some very uncomfortable side effects, especially when using marijuana products with high THC levels. People have reported symptoms such as anxiety and paranoia, and in rare cases, an extreme psychotic reaction that can lead them to seek treatment in an emergency room.
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