The Legalization of Marijuana

Effects of Marijuana

• slowed cognitive processing
• impaired short-term memory
• loss of sustained concentration
• impaired visuospatial processing
• decrease in verbal interactions, increase in non-verbal interactions
• increase in food intake
• increase in heart rate
  
• long-term effects are not known
  

Medical Benefits

• anti-convulsant
• reduction in fluid pressure in eyes (glaucoma)
• reduction in nausea caused by some cancer drugs
• increase in food intake (can be good for cancer and AIDS patients)

Disadvantages

• marijuana (smoked) is addictive
• not as effective when taken orally
• active ingredient (THC) is extremely difficult to get into a form that can be administered intravenously
• quality of the plant varies a lot
  
• use of marijuana can cause panic reactions
• impairs lung function and increases risk of lung cancers when used chronically
• more carcinogens in marijuana than tobacco
• other possible effects: decrease in immune system functioning, reproductive damage, brain damage, schizophrenia
  
• most of the time, there are other safer and more effective drugs available to treat the symptoms listed above

Conclusion

Marijuana should not be legalized for medicinal purposes. In my view, there are far more disadvantages than advantages to doing so.

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