cannabisnews.com: Marijuana Still Befuddles Law Makers





Marijuana Still Befuddles Law Makers
Posted by CN Staff on September 12, 2002 at 10:03:31 PT
By Helen Phillips
Source: New Scientist UK
Two conflicting reports on the effects of cannabis seem set to push the drugs policies of the US and Canada in opposite directions.The Canadian Senate Special Committee on Illegal Drugs will release a report this week that is expected to recommend consideration of some form of legalisation. The committee has already produced a discussion paper stating that there is no convincing evidence that using cannabis makes people more likely to abuse harder drugs.
The committee points out that of loo adolescent users, just 10 will continue to use the drug regularly into adulthood and 5 will progress to other drugs. It also suggests that criminal sentences may be the most damaging result of marijuana use.In stark contrast, a report released last week by the US Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, based on annual surveys, says that the younger children are when they first use marijuana, the more likely they are to use cocaine and heroin and become dependent on drugs as adults. It concludes that postponing people's first use could prevent progression to other illicit drugs."These findings are of grave concern because studies show smoking marijuana leads to changes in the brain similar to those caused by cocaine, heroin and alcohol," says Charles Curie of the administration. "Heavy marijuana abuse impairs the ability of young people to retain information during their peak learning years when their brains are still developing."Decriminalisation will make cannabis more available, more acceptable and cheaper, adds David Murray of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, making it more likely that younger people will try it."Decriminalisation of marijuana, I believe, is not only weak drug policy, it is from a public health perspective a deep mistake," he says.The US report has been met with scepticism from many researchers, who point out that a statistical correlation does not prove the physiological "gateway" hypothesis that cannabis use leads to harder drugs. Nor does it prove that preventing cannabis use will reduce the risk of later drugs problems. "It's embarrassing that officials are still spouting this nonsense," says Mitchell Earleywine of the University of Southern California, author of Understanding Marijuana.The only evidence for brain differences is that people who start taking marijuana before age 17 or so have less grey matter, he says. But it's impossible to know whether this is a result of drug use or a reason why they took up the drug. "They are picking out evidence that suits the political agenda rather than being truly objective," he says.The report also shows that 91 per cent of marijuana smokers had previously used alcohol or cigarettes. "Whatever's most available gets used first," says Earleywine. "That maybe a more parsimonious explanation for the staging of drug use than anything else."The Canadian and the US studies do agree on one thing: drug policies make little difference to the number of people who try the drug - around 45 per cent of young adults. "That should be the real headline," says Bruce Mirken of the Marijuana Policy Project in the US, which advocates policies aimed at minimising any harmful effects.Source: New Scientist (U.K.)Author: Helen PhillipsPublished: September 7, 2002Copyright: New Scientist, RBI Limited 2002- Page: 6Contact: letters newscientist.comWebsite: http://www.newscientist.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Marijuana Policy Projecthttp://www.mpp.org/Canadian Panel Backs Legalizing Marijuana http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14010.shtmlStudy: Illegal Drug Use Up Sharplyhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14027.shtml
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help




Post Comment