Hash is healthy!

Is it beneficial to grow new cells in brains except in the case of Alzheimer's?

Carcinogens act by increasing the ability of cells to multiply; unregulated cell growth is called a tumor. More does not always mean better. I would like evidence:

1. the cells can be regulated
2. they are "normal"
3. the sythetic chemical behaves exactly the same as marijuana
4. marijuana increases brain cells

 

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Parents and school principals are always trying to scare kids with the message that smoking pot will lead to harder drugs. Well, a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggests that the grownups may be on to something.

By tracking 311 pairs of Australian twins (both fraternal and identical) in which one twin used marijuana before age 17 and the other did not, researchers have been able to show that early pot users are as much as five times more likely to use or abuse cocaine, heroin, hallucinogens, sedatives or alcohol.

Does marijuana use trigger subtle biochemical changes that encourage drug-taking behavior? Or does cannabis give kids an entree into social circles where stronger drugs are used? The study doesn't have all the answers, but it does offer kids another reason to heed their elders.
http://cannabisnews.com/news/15/thread15292.shtml

 

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Here is some new info:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/...ids=16548935&query_hl=105&itool=pubmed_docsum

 

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This doesn't address my argument.
Marijuana led to other drugs because of the categorization of the self as a drug user and a criminal.
To get an accurate study on the 'gateway' effect, you'd need to do testing in an environment where marijuana is legal and is not classified in any way with illicit drug use.

Also.
In the average scenario. Cigarettes and alcohol come first.


Edit:
From Sam's link:

Exactly.
It remains unclear.
Although it is fairly obvious that is far more likely to be caused by societal stigma (especially considering the fact that the effect tapers with age. Youth are very prone to societal pressures.) than to be caused by some type of physiological effect of the plant itself.

It's funny, in a way.
Pot is a gateway drug only because it's been demonized so severely.
It's a self-fulfilling prophecy.

And. Again. No mention is made of alcohol and tobacco being the original steps in a rebel and partying lifestyle which is another leg on the stool.

 

marihuana is like any other drug: there are relative good effects or bad depending on the motive of the individual selecting it.

I actually think legalizing it will take it off the black market and make it safer. It can be made available by prescription and hence regulated for age and health status of the user.

Until that time comes, however, we must be careful about the promotion of it indiscriminately. There are side effects and not all who use it (or intend to use it) may have access to sufficient information to make an informed decision. That's all.

 

invert_nexus

Here is one study where they separated cannabis users from other drug users to test for associated drug usage in twins

After adjustment for covariates, rates of lifetime party drug use, hard drug use , but not regular cannabis use were significantly elevated in individuals who reported early onset cannabis use, relative to their co-twin who had not used cannabis by age 18. The elevated odds of subsequent illicit drug use in early cannabis users relative to their non early using co-twins suggests that this association could not be explained by common familial risk factors, either genetic or environmental, for which our co-twin methodology provided rigorous control.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/...ids=16402286&query_hl=120&itool=pubmed_DocSum

PS I do not support the promotion of tobacco or alcohol to adolescents either

 

i believe that the 'gateway' effect is a combination of things.
1. marijuana is a relativly mild drug. the effects of marijuana cannot be increased by smoking another joint.
2. the type of person you are. if you try marijuana then you are apt to try other drugs as well.
3. availability. marijuana use puts you in contact with dealers that usually have other drugs on hand.

 

Drug use has become the social scene for almost everyone. This couldn't have happened without the War on Some Drugs. The biggest reason that this has become acceptable to so many people is because it has become the most comfortable alternative for them. People who want you to be "straight" are very often uncomfortable to be around. Their recreational drugs of choice are more uncomfortable and nastier for the high that you do get, and their society really isn't for real people. You come away from them feeling like you gave five pints of blood.

 

"Drug use has become the social scene for almost everyone."

No it has not.

 

Yes, it has. The last person who took a sample from me for drug testing had meth mouth.

 

You move in very restricted circles

 

Or maybe you do?
I bet you'd be surprised what your 'circle' does behind closed doors.

 

I didn't say they don't exist, but its a stretch to claim that all use.

Unless you are talking about the US?

 

TOR has brought up a very good point and that is in the countries where marijuana is legal the potency has steadily increased.

most of my personal experience with marijuana is with low to medium grade varieties but i have smoked some pot that was the absolute bomb.

so where do we draw the line for concentration? 3%? 5%? or something else?

 

Does the effect get diminished with chronic use? Or is it enhanced with increased concentration?

That would be one explanation for increasing the potency.

 

yes, a person acquires a tolerance for marijuana. probably another reason for the gateway effect.

 

Sounds like a vicious cycle

 

14 percent has been around for at least 30 to 40 years. This is like one of those urban legends that makes the rounds every few years. The legend is that the potency is increasing, which it's not.

 

14 percent may have been around, but what are you using?

 

I quit using long before my friends did and now I am pretty much a total failure while they own houses and cars and have families.