Marijuana vs. All Drugs

"I took an oath to do no harm. If a doctor is willing to give you a prescription for a drug that is addictive or could kill you, then why should you not be able to choose a non-toxic drug like marijuana?"

Leslie Iversen, PhD, Professor in the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Oxford, wrote in his Oct. 2000 book The Science of Marijuana:

"Cannabis is a safer drug than aspirin and can be used long-term without serious side effects."

Eric Voth, MD, Chairman of the Institute on Global Drug Policy, wrote in a Dec. 3, 2001 email to ProCon.org.

"Marijuana is about comparable to tobacco in its effects and risks but it is intoxicating so the harmful effects are mixed."

How much do Americans spend on prescription drugs each year?

According to the lecture notes: Over 2.4 billion prescriptions are written in the USA each year @ $100 billion. Translation: Big business and corporate money keep "legal drugs" acceptable. The legality of a substance varies on who is proposing that it be legal or illegal.

And what is a drug anyway?

A drug is any chemical that has a physiological effect on the human body. However, what we consider good and bad drugs depends on the society and the individual making the judgment. When considering the definition of drugs one has to take in account that everything about it (action, dependence, and classification) is relative. If we are considering the definition of drugs from a social constructionist perspective then drugs are cultural artifacts, the label of being a drug makes it a drug.

So how dangerous is marijuana? Is it worse than caffeine, or alcohol, and what about tobacco?

Source: Jack E. Henningfield, PhD for NIDA, Reported by Philip J. Hilts, New York Times, Aug. 2, 1994 "Is Nicotine Addictive? It Depends on Whose Criteria You Use." See, http://drugwarfacts.org/addictiv.htm

About half of all Americans who continue to smoke will die because of the habit. Each year about 438,000 people in the United States die from illnesses related to cigarette smoking. Cigarettes kill more Americans than alcohol, car accidents, suicide, AIDS, homicide, and illegal drugs combined. Taken from the American Cancer Society's website: http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/content/PED_10_2X_Cigarette_Smoking.asp?sitearea=PED.

Cigarette smoking accounts for at least 30% of all cancer deaths. It is a major cause of cancers of the lung, larynx (voice box), oral cavity, pharynx (throat), esophagus (swallowing tube connected to the stomach), and bladder, and it contributes to the development of cancers of the pancreas, cervix, kidney, stomach, and also some leukemias.

Smoking is responsible for about 87% of lung cancer deaths. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in both men and women, and is one of the most difficult cancers to treat. Lung cancer is a disease that can in many cases be prevented. Groups that promote non-smoking as part of their religion, such as Mormons and Seventh-day Adventists, have much lower rates of lung cancer and other smoking-related cancers. Taken from the American Cancer Society's website: <http://www.cancer.org/docroot/PED/content/PED_10_2X_Cigarette_Smoking.asp?sitearea=PED.>

Some say yes. Michael Thun, MD, vice president of epidemiology and surveillance research for the American Cancer Society (ACS), agreed the study [completed in 2001] strongly suggests habitual marijuana smoking increases the risk of head and neck cancers. "This is not surprising since many of the same cancer causing substances in tobacco smoke are present in marijuana smoke. Marijuana cigarettes generally deposit more tar in the respiratory tract than tobacco cigarettes," he said. Taken from the American Cancer Society's website: http://www.cancer.org/docroot/NWS/content/NWS_1_1x_Smoking_Marijuana_May_Increase_Cancer_Risk.asp

THC can be used to treat pain and decrease nausea in people with Cancer. The only thing that makes it illegal is the law.

Important point: The LD (lethal dose) of Alcohol is 10 times the ED (effective dose) needed to get the usual desired effect of being intoxicated. Marijuana's LD is over 100 to 1000 times that of the ED.

"There is little evidence, however, that long-term cannabis use causes permanent cognitive impairment, nor is there is any clear cause and effect relationship to explain the psychosocial associations. There are some physical health risks, particularly the possibility of damage to the airways in cannabis smokers. Overall, by comparison with other drugs used mainly for ‘recreational’ purposes, cannabis could be rated to be a relatively safe drug." Source: Iversen, Leslie. Current Opinion in Pharmacology. Volume 5, Issue 1, February 2005, Pages 69-72. Long-term effects of exposure to cannabis. University of Oxford, Department of Pharmacology.

Source: New Scientist Magazine. Issue 2563. August 2006, page 5. Drug-danger 'league table' revealed.

It is interesting to note that not every country views Marijuana the same way that the United States does.