At a time, as now, when the interests of big business coincide with those of major media outlets and the known preferences of ensconced liberal academics, it behoves us to consider seriously the debate on the legal status of cannabis.\u00a0 There comes a time in the life of democracies where the voice of the masses, the \u201cvox populi\u201d driven by the herd instinct can endanger or at least drown out the voice of Science and Reason.<\/p>\n
It is therefore very refreshing, and in terms of its pertinence to the current debate, of great importance, that a confluence has been struck between the world\u2019s top addiction researcher, Dr Nora Volkow, the Director of the Nationals Institutes of Health Institute devoted to the research and care into drug addiction, with the world\u2019s undisputed leading medical a journal, the New England Journal of Medicine.\u00a0 Dr Volkow overseas the distribution of around USD$1 Billion in research funds to addiction researchers globally, and funds an estimated 85% of addiction research around the world.\u00a0 She is an eminent and well published researcher in her own right, with a recent search of the National Library of Medicine Catalogue, known as PubMed showing 603 peer reviewed papers published in her name, along with doubtless countless monographs and book chapters which are not listed on this famous international database.<\/p>\n
Dr Volkow\u2019s recent piece in the New England Journal of Medicine was entitled \u201cAdverse Effects of Marijuana Use\u201d, and may be found in volume 370, No. 23, pages 2219-2227, and was published on 5th June 2014.<\/p>\n
It cannot be stressed to members enough that her piece was written specifically to counterbalance the implicit presumption which underlies much of the liberalist position that marijuana is essentially harmless, and that all those who seek to restrict its use are nothing more than kill-joys and party poopers.\u00a0 Dr Volkow\u2019s paper makes the point successfully that the reason the legal drugs alcoh9ol and tobacco are associated with more disease and death than the illicit drugs, lies not in their intrinsic toxicity, but in the wider availability of the legal drugs.\u00a0 Since the pro-cannabis lobby seek to increase the availability of cannabis, its measured toxicities will inevitably increase.\u00a0 This is the inevitable conclusion presented by the thoughtful authors of this paper.\u00a0 Indeed the documented trend in cannabis potency in the US from 1975-2013 has been an strictly inverse relationship between perceived harm and teenage smoking trends now for forty years.\u00a0 This is in the context of a four-fold monotonic rise in cannabinoid content from 3% in the 19080\u2019s to 12% in 2012.<\/p>\n
To the liberalist perspective the findings in the paper are devastating.\u00a0 The researchers document that cannabis is addictive.\u00a0 Whilst rates of cannabis addiction in the general community are reported at 9%, it rises to around 16% when use commences in adolescence, and up to 50% in those who smoke daily.\u00a0 Cannabis addiction can cause a recognized withdrawal state.\u00a0 Because the brain develops and matures until the end of the third decade of life, there are grave concerns related to the exposure of young people to it.\u00a0 It has been shown to interfere with the circuits and wiring of the prefrontal executive centres, and in the critical hippocampal formation which is pivotally involved in the formation of new memories, attention, and emotionality. It damages the precuneus which is a key integrative area.\u00a0 Moreover these effects last not only during cannabis intoxication, but also, because it is fat soluble, for days afterwards.\u00a0 Because of its effect on the brain\u2019s dopamine-dependent reward pathways, it increases the use of other drugs in later life.\u00a0 Cannabis damages memory, cognitive function and attention systems.\u00a0 Cannabis, tobacco and alcohol all act as gateway drugs and prime the brain to the use of harder drugs in later life.<\/p>\n
Cannabis therefore has the not surprising effect of reducing:<\/p>\n
* school performance,<\/p>\n
* school grades achieved,<\/p>\n
* school retention rates,<\/p>\n
* IQ,<\/p>\n
* income attained,<\/p>\n
* employment rates, and<\/p>\n
* life satisfaction and<\/p>\n
* increasing criminality rates.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mental illness is also elevated by cannabis.\u00a0 Increased rates of anxiety, depression, psychosis, inlcuding schizophrenia, have all been observed across the board, not just in those who may be considered to be predisposed.\u00a0 Moreover known schizophrenia is exacerbated by cannabis exposure.\u00a0 Car crashes including fatal car crashes are elevated.\u00a0 Cannabis-related emergency room visits have risen.\u00a0 Drivers can be intoxicated with both cannabis and alcohol which are cumulatively toxic, dangerous and lethal.<\/p>\n
Since cannabis is immunosuppressive real concerns exist about its use in HIV\/AIDS patients,\u00a0 or its administration to patients with respiratory conditions.<\/p>\n
Cannabis smoking has been shown to increase lung secretions and suppress respiratory immunity.\u00a0 It is associated with chronic bronchitis, lung hyperinflation, and increased airways resistance.\u00a0 Whilst its affect on lung cancer is uncertain at this time, a negative result was reported in a single US study examining only very low level cannabis exposure \u2013 a mere 30 joint years (one joint daily for 30 years).\u00a0 However serious cause for concern has been raised by studies of its cardiovascular effects, showing associations with stroke, heart attack, and transient ischemic episodes.<\/p>\n
There are real concerns about the use of cannabis in pregnancy which require further study. The authors also note that because of the dramatic rise in potency in cannabis, older studies showing a lack of effect may be falsely reporting negative results, given the increased potency of the preparation available in modern times.\u00a0 The effect of second-hand smoke and passive smoking also needs careful research.<\/p>\n
In conclusion this lengthy and exhaustive report from the world\u2019s leading researchers in addiction medicine strikes a very sombre and sobering warning note to any sane parent, and any members of this Honourable House who are contemplating having grandchildren.\u00a0 Devastating effects on maturating brain function, mental illness, gateway effects for other drugs, lifetime educational achievement, poverty, employment rates, driving, respiratory and cardiovascular effects have all been demonstrated beyond reasonable doubt in a context where the potency of the available preparations has risen by four-fold.\u00a0 Passive smoking effects and effects on pregnancy are likely but as yet not proven.\u00a0 Increased availability is necessarily associated with increased morbidity and mortality.<\/p>\n
There is enough material here to give serious pause to any members tempted by alleged tax revenue streams to succumb to the siren song of the seduction of \u201cthe weed.\u201d<\/p>\n
We have been warned most soberly and most sombrely.\u00a0 It will be up to us to heed this eminent warning and to act accordingly and appropriately.<\/p>\n
Source:\u00a0 : Speech for NSW Parliament on Cannabis legalization Based on Dr Volkow’s Paper in NEJM July 2014<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" At a time, as now, when the interests of big business coincide with those of major media outlets and the known preferences of ensconced liberal academics, it behoves us to consider seriously the debate on the legal status of cannabis.\u00a0 There comes a time in the life of democracies where the voice of the masses, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[63,68,90,64,19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9605","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-brain-and-behaviour","category-drug-use-various-effects","category-global-drug-legalisation-efforts","category-health","category-usa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9605","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9605"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9605\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9605"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9605"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9605"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}