Americans have radically changed their habits on recreational drugs. Today, 22 percent of Americans currently use marijuana, 20 percent regularly drink alcohol, and 11 percent use tobacco, according to a Marist Poll on “Weed and the American Family.”
This change in habits reflect not only the social acceptance of marijuana, but also the ignorance of the many harms of marijuana. Possession of marijuana is still a federal crime because it is a harmful drug. Marijuana has never been approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
Yet, many people are under the perception that marijuana has health benefits and that marijuana is less harmful than either alcohol or tobacco.
Marijuana no longer has a social stigma. A majority of Americans (56%) consider this illegal drug as socially acceptable. Three-quarters of Americans think that the regular use of either tobacco or alcohol are greater health risks than marijuana usage. Only 18% of Americans think that the regular use of marijuana is a bigger health risk. Many parents worry more about their children using tobacco than other drugs.
Tobacco companies made money by marketing cigarettes as “medicine” that was not only safe to use, but good for you. A famous 1946 commercial from R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company used the slogan, “More doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette.” Celebrities and athletes were paid to endorse tobacco smoking. The advertising was very successful. Tobacco use peaked in 1965 with nearly 42% of Americans who daily used tobacco — one year after the Surgeon General’s Report on Smoking and Health. That bombshell report was a top news story and it found a probable link between smokers and lung cancer. It took decades of public health campaigns to change the public’s attitude and perception of tobacco from a benign medicine to a cancer stick.
We need the same public health campaign on marijuana. This year, the surgeon general issued a report on “Marijuana and the Developing Brain,” which concluded that “No amount of marijuana use during pregnancy or adolescence is known to be safe.” This report needs more publicity to change the perception of pot as medicine.
The correlation between regular use of cannabis and psychosis is strong and the risk is higher for males than females. Whether males with mental illness are more attracted to marijuana or if the heavy use of marijuana actually cause psychotic symptoms is not known. What we do know is that marijuana use is not benign.
As an employer, would you rather have an employee addicted to pot or alcohol or tobacco? As a parent, would you rather have your child addicted to pot or alcohol or tobacco?
All of these drugs have consequences when used daily. All of these drugs contribute to long-term health issues. All of these drugs can be highly addicting. Tobacco use does not cause the mental impairment that the use of marijuana and alcohol always do cause. For most people, moderate alcohol use does not necessarily lead to addiction.
However, in developing brains under the age of 25, marijuana does cause serious harm and lifetime problems. Regular marijuana use can reduce a person’s IQ by 8 points. Many habitual users of marijuana develop psychosis, depression, and other mental illnesses. At least 56 scientific studies have confirmed the link between high-potency marijuana and psychosis, including a 2020 study published in the Journal of American Medicine. This study found that using high-potency THC (the active ingredient in marijuana) was associated with “significant increases” in addiction and mental health disorders.
Marijuana legalization is being pushed because lawmakers want tax money and drug dealers want profits.
