| HASHISH AND MARIJUANA |
| The primary effects of Marijuana and Hashish: are behavioral because the drug affects the central nervous system. Both Marijuana and Hashish decrease one's ability to perform tasks requiring a great deal of coordination (such as driving a car). Visual tracking is impaired and the sense of time is prolonged. Learning is greatly affected because the drug diminishes the ability to concentrate. Frequent users may experience a loss of energy, lack of concentration, memory loss, decreased performance at work or school, and a general lack of ambition. Other effects may include blood shot eyes; increased heart rate and blood pressure; bronchial irritation; sinusitis; and asthma in heavy users; decreased fertility; and possible detrimental effects upon the immune system. Regular users will may also experience agitation, insomnia, irritabilirt, and anxiety over a period of time. 1- Rapid, loud talking and bursts of laughter in early stages of intoxication 2- Sleepy or stuporous in later stages of intoxication. 3- Forgetfulness inconversation 4- Inflammation in the whites of the eyes; pupils unlikely to be dilated 5- Odor similar to the burnt rope on clothing por breath 6- Tendency to drive slowly (beneath speed limit) 7- Distorted sense of time (tendency to over estimate time intervals) 8- Use or possession of paraphernalia (roach clip, packs of rolling papers, pipes, bongs) Brand / Generic Names: Hash Oil, Hashish, Marijuana, Marinol, Dranabinol, Thai Stick. Possible Effects of Cannabis (Detailed): Cannabis appears to interfere with a person's ability or willingness to pay attention. People under the influence of marijuana do not divide their attention very well. When driving, they may attend to certain parts of the driving task but ignore other parts. For example; the driver may continue to steer the car but ignore stop signs, traffic lights or pedestrians. Cannabis will generally diminish inhibitions, impair perception of time and distance, create disorientation, and can cause body tremors. User's of marijuana generally feel the effecrts within 8-9 seconds after inhaling the smoke. The effects will reach their peak within 10-30 minutes, and usually last for approximately 3-6 hours. The user will typically feel "normal" within 3-6 hours after smoking marijuana. Evidence of marijuana can be disclosed in some blood and urine tests long after the effects have dissipated. This is because certain chemical tests do not seek to find THC, Delta-9 Tetrahydrocannabinol - the active ingredient in cannabis that causes intoxication, but instead looks for metabolites of THC, or chemical by-products. Some tests can indicate the presence of THC metabolites for up to 45 days after smoking marijuana. Two important metabolites of THC affect the duration, and perception, of the effects of cannabis. One of these metabolites is Hydroxy THC: This causes the user to feel euphoric, so that he or she is aware of the effects. Hydroxy THC usually is eliminated from the blood plasma within about 6 hours. The other important metabolite is Carboxy THC.This metabolite also causes impairment, but no feeling of euphoria, so the user might not be aware that he or she is still impaired. Carboxy THC may be found in the blood plasma for several days following marijuana use. Therefore, the user may actually be impaired for a good deal of time after his or her perceptions of impairment have ended. Excessive use of marijuana can create paranoia and possible psychosis. These same effects may develop from long-term use of the drug, which has also been observed to produce sharp personality changes, especially in adolescent users.Other long-term effects include: lung damage, chronic bronchitis, lowering of testosterone, acute anxiety defects, still births and infant deaths Pot "Gateway to Harder Drugs" Two recent studies strongly suggest that pot is a gateway drug whose use leads some people on to abuse of so called hard drugs, such as cocaine and heroin. One study in the journal Science, demonstrates that the stress and anxiety associated with withdrawal form long-term use of marijuana produce the same biochemical changes associated with withdrawal from the harder drugs. This is the negative reinforcement that causes a person to take more drugs to alleviate the stress. A seconde study, also in Science, demonstrates for the first time that marijuana activates the same pleasure centers in the brain that are targeted by heroin, cocaine and alcohol, again providing a reason to seek out the drug. "We now have a smoking gun - a biological mechanism by which this gateway phenomenon could be occuring" said Dr.Herbert Kleber, medical director of the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University and the Chairman of the all-volunteer DARE American Scientific Advisory Board. The backdrop to these studies show that an individual who uses marijuana is 17 times more likely to use cocian that one who never smoked pot. |
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