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Biology Coursework: Cannabis, how dangerous is it really Cannabis, how dangerous is it really? Problems What is it? Cannabis is a plant that is thought to have originated in the Afghan mountains and since then has adapted and spread throughout the world from frozen tundra’s to baking deserts. The first recorded use is roughly dated 10,000 years ago “This is based upon, amongst other discoveries, clay pots which were discovered in Taiwan containing strands of Cannabis fibre in the decorations.”1 There is more than one type of Cannabis, not all of them are illegal. Cannabis sativa is the species, all cannabis comes under this heading, this said there are three sub categories, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica and Cannabis ruderalis. Ruderalis is legal and used for anything defined as a hemp product, it produces long strong fibres used in the textile industry, sativa and indica are the psychoactive varieties. How is it used? Cannabis is grown to sexual maturity, if indoors the light cycle must be in sync with its natural daylight patterns. Whereupon the daylight hours reach a balance of 12 hours of darkness and 12 hours of light, cannabis starts to flower, buds form along the main branches which produce trichomes containing THC. Once the crop has reached the desired potency the buds are harvested from the plant, dried and then administered. Either by smoking in a cigarette or pipe, baked in foods or even dissolved in alcohol. How does it work? Cannabis is composed of many different compounds and cannbinols. The main psychoactive agent in cannabis is “THC (delta9-trans-Tetrahydrocannibinol)2”. There are others such as CBD and CBN but THC is the main culprit, it replicates anandamide and attaches to the cannabiniod receptors in the brain and activates the neurons. Altering thought and perception patterns. Risks and benefits Cannabis has varying degrees of risks and benefits according to the person smoking it, we shall break these down into short and long term affects respectively. Note that short term affects apply to those that occur whilst intoxicated and by no means continue to affect the body after the cannabis has dissipated form the blood stream. Whereas long term affects are those that become substantiated after a long period of regular intoxication and may have no bearing on the short term effects. Short term affects: Cannabis has many noticeable short term affects, • Memory loss- Intoxication of cannabis is proven to affect the short term memory in obvious ways, Miller reported “The single, most consistently reported behavioural effect of cannabinoids in humans is an alteration of

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http://www.moravek.net/ovisnosti/hemp/history.html Marijuana Horticulture the indoor/outdoor medical growers bible by Jorge cervante

By: Marcus Pierce, 21/04/2010

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Biology Coursework: Cannabis, how dangerous is it really memory functioning."3 Users generally find it difficult to remember actions as little as 10 seconds ago • Anxiety, paranoia – It is believed that cannabis can cause or at least amplify existing tendencies towards paranoia, creating the illusions in some subjects that others are out to get them. Loss of motor skills – Reaction times are slowed and altered though not as dramatically as with alcohol Xerostomia – Dry mouth, due to a lack of saliva production Stress relief – Users may feel care free and cease to worry so much about future inhibitions Euphoria – Caused by release of serotonin in the neuron synapses Well being – Just an overall feeling of contentment Increased libido

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The long term affects of cannabis are a little more complicated, there is a casual correlation between chronic cannabis use and developing schizophrenia and psychosis, (psychosis being “In the general sense, a mental illness that markedly interferes with a person's capacity to meet life's everyday demands. In a specific sense, it refers to a thought disorder in which reality testing is grossly impaired”4). Scientists have yet to find a satisfactory explanation for this. The BBC programme Panorama recently went on air exploring the link between Cannabis use and mental illnesses. Of The four existing hypotheses,
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The first, the causal hypothesis, suggests that heavy cannabis use can cause mental disorders such as psychosis. Second, the dormant hypothesis argues that cannabis use may precipitate a mental disorder that was previously dormant in individuals prone to mental health disorders. Third, the common cause hypothesis states that mental illness and cannabis use may simply occur together as a result of common variables, such as unemployment, family difficulties and other drug use. The fourth is the self-medication hypothesis, that people use cannabis after experiencing signs of a mental health disorder in order to alleviate symptoms.
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The Last was considered the most reasonable by the scientific community, however the BBC claims “However the new research is generating more interest in the first hypothesis; namely that cannabis use itself can cause psychosis”6. Some of this new
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http://www.idmu.co.uk/canmem.htm http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=5110 5 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/panorama/4109360.stm 6 http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/panorama/4109360.stm

By: Marcus Pierce, 21/04/2010

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Biology Coursework: Cannabis, how dangerous is it really research came in the form of a study conducted on “1600 Australian school pupils aged 14 to 15”7 The research concluded that daily cannabis use increases the risk of depression at the age of 20 by five times. More research however is needed to prove that cannabis is the cause of certain mental illnesses.

Ethical, social and economic issues: There are different aspects regarding the issues above, economically cannabis is a big problem, since it is illegal many millions are spent trying to prevent the cultivation, import or export of cannabis millions that are effectively fronted by the tax payer. In an online poll conducted by AV Forum concerning the legalization of cannabis figures show a 51% to 41% division for and against respectively. Obviously the case is not cut and dry. Since the government reclassified cannabis to class C, the amount of people in London arrested for cannabis related charges dropped by 53%8 in London Alone. In a country where prison space is already overcrowded is it ethical to crowd them still with offenders that half the population don’t believe to be in the wrong in the first place. Due to its illegal status Cannabis has become the domain of gangs and criminal enterprises and also the source of much gang violence.

Possible solutions It is undeniable the current legal status of cannabis is not only confused but based more on prejudice than actual scientific evidence. One way of dealing with this is to completely reform the drugs policy of the UK, completely eradicate all past acts and amendments and start from scratch. The best way to base the new policy fairly would be to invest more money into the research of the effects of cannabis, in particular long term studies that follow cannabis users through a large proportion of life. But the government must also focus on lowering the demand of the drug within the country, a sort of “To kill the snake, cut off the body” solution, but despite the recent advertising campaign it is a slow process. Alternative views and solutions One alternative to our current legal state of affairs concerning cannabis would be to model our system more closely to that of the Dutch where although cannabis is not legalized it is legally tolerated and socially accepted, in a study titled “The Limited Relevance of Drug Policy: Cannabis in Amsterdam and in San Francisco,”9 scientists found despite the vast differences in drug policies of the two countries, the number of drug users and the habits of said drug users were found to be remarkably similar, concluding that the liberal approach of the Dutch doesn’t necessarily increase the amount of cannabis users.

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New Scientist. Nov 2002

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/cannabis-arrests-fall-in-london-but-public-and-policeare-confused-534307.html 9 American Journal of Public Health

By: Marcus Pierce, 21/04/2010

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Biology Coursework: Cannabis, how dangerous is it really Another Alternative view would be a complete legalization of cannabis; this would not only remove the criminal factor currently surrounding cannabis but also give the government an opportunity to tax the import, distribution and sale much like they do with tobacco. By introducing a card or identity scheme the 18 age limit that would have to be introduced could effectively be maintained. Not only would legalization eliminate cannabis related gang violence it could also help the government carry out the research it needs.

By: Marcus Pierce, 21/04/2010

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Biology Coursework: Cannabis, how dangerous is it really Bibliography: 1. http://www.moravek.net/ovisnosti/hemp/history.html: By: Rob Christopher, Date of publish: NA, Date obtained:20/04/2010, Reliability: Cannot be taken as unbiased, however on the fact borrowed from him no reason to lie is prominent or promotes personal gain 2. Marijuana Horticulture the indoor/outdoor medical growers bible: (book) By: Jorge Cervantes, Publisher: Van Patten Publishing, Date of publish: N/A, Date obtained: 20/04/2010, Evaluation: Very reliable, Jorge Cervantes is an expert in the field of marijuana cultivation 3. http://www.idmu.co.uk/canmem.htm: By: N/A, Date of Publish: N/A, Date obtained: 20/04/2010, Evaluation: Reliable, compost of articles written by people who can be held responsible for their words. 4. http://www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=5110: By: N/A, Published by: “MedicineNet, Inc”, Date of publish: N/A, Date obtained: 20/04/2010, Evaluation: Reliable, composed by professionals in the field of medicine and consultancy 5. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/panorama/4109360.stm: By: The BBC, Date of Publish: N/A, Date obtained: 20/04/2010, Evaluation: Reliable, the BBC is an unbiased news group in the sense they don’t print lies. 6. New Scientist. Nov 2002: (article) Title: Cannabis link to mental illness strengthened, By: Emma Young, Date of publish: 21 November 2002, Date obtained: 21/04/2010, Evaluation: Reliable, New Scientist is an unbiased observer that would not find any gain in lying one way or the other 7. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/cannabis-arrests-fall-inlondon-but-public-and-police- are-confused-534307.html: Title: Cannabis arrests fall in London but public and police are 'confused', By: Jason Bennetto, Date of publish: Tuesday, 23 November 2004, Date obtained: 21/04/2010, Evaluation: Reliable again the Independent is an unbiased observer. 8. American Journal of Public Health: By: N/A, Date of publish: N/A, Date obtained: 21/04/2010, Evaluation: Reliable, Unbiased observer

By: Marcus Pierce, 21/04/2010

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