Facts About Marijuana
- Marijuana contains the same amount of cancer-causing chemicals as four cigarettes. The amount of tar inhaled by marijuana users is 3 to 5 times that of a cigarette smoker.
- Studies show that someone who smokes five joints per day may be taking in as many cancer-causing chemicals as someone who smokes a full pack of cigarettes every day.
- Marijuana today is 30 times stronger than it was 30 years ago, so it poses an even greater risk of psychological, cognitive and respiratory problems. Because it is more potent, it is more effective at triggering the changes in the brain that can lead to addiction and the potential for users to become dependent on other drugs.
Short-term effects:
- The short-term effects of marijuana include: problems with memory and learning, distorted perception (sights, sounds, time, touch), trouble with thinking and problem solving, loss of motor coordination and increased heart rate. These effects are even greater when other drugs are mixed with the marijuana and users do not always know what drugs are given to them.
A few minutes after smoking marijuana, anxiety or paranoia may set in. Overall, marijuana effects memory, judgment, coordination and perception. - Teens with an average grade of “D” are four times as likely to have used marijuana in the last year.
- Teens who begin marijuana use may be more vulnerable to problems with mental & verbal abilities.
- Marijuana can stay in the body up to one month. That means it can be detected by a standard drug test long after initial use.
Long-term effects:
- The long-term effects of marijuana use cause cancer and problems with the respiratory and immune systems. People who smoke marijuana often develop the same kinds of breathing problems that cigarette smokers have: coughing and wheezing. They tend to have more chest colds than nonusers. They are also at greater risk of getting lung infections like pneumonia. Marijuana damages the cells and tissues in the body that help protect against disease. When the immune cells are weakened you are more likely to get sick.
- Marijuana use increases the risk of developing mental disorders by 40 percent. Studies have shown links between adolescent marijuana use and Alzheimer’s and Schizophrenia.
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| Facts about Alcohol | Facts about Tobacco |
| Facts about Marijuana | Facts about Other Drugs |
| Facts about Suicide and Depression | Facts about Dating Violence |
