Marijuana is one of the most abused drugs in the
United States. In view of its widespread abuse, it
is
important to know how marijuana affects your
health. This article discusses short and long-term
effects of marijuana abuse.
Short-term effects
The short-term effects are as follows:
• Affects person's performance
Studies show that use of marijuana affects the
performance of the person. It affects severely the
educational performance of the person - gets
lower
grades, fails to complete the graduation.
Likewise, if the person is working, the drug leads
to
higher number of sickness related leaves,
unexplained absence, more accidents at
workplace,
more workers' compensation claims, etc., and
eventually the productivity of the person declines
drastically.
• Perception, memory, intellect and psycho-motor
co-ordination impairment
Use of marijuana impairs the correct perception of
things. This is because THC (Delta-9-
tetrahydrocannabinol) in it affects part of the brain
that is responsible for focus, attention, memory,
the
ability in senses, and perception of time. The
effect
is excess stimulation of the brain, which leads
impairment of perception. The person feels as if
there were things, even if they are not there. Thus,
the person feels hallucinated.
The THC also affects the normal functioning of
the
brain and this causes anxiety, nervousness, etc. in
the abuser. Further, it leads to loss of co-
ordination between the brain and the limbs. Thus,
the person is unable to react timely in certain
situations such as while driving a vehicle.
• Low motivation
Marijuana leads to depression in the person and
they do not like to participate in activities that
could bring rewards. The person has unreasonable
fear, and has low motivation to pursue the normal
course of activities.
Long-term effects
Use of this drug causes certain effects in the long
run. We discuss them here briefly.
• Addiction
Marijuana if consumed regularly, the person
becomes addicted to it. Research shows that nine
per cent of users get addicted to the drug. This
number is higher in young starters (17 percent)
and 20 to 25 percent in daily users. There are
close to 4.5 million people addicted to the drug in
the United States. (Source: National Institute on
Drug Abuse, USA).
The addictive effect of this drug is because of the
THC component in it, which makes the brain less
receptive to the drug with each passing day. As a
result, the person has to use more of it to get
similar effect, and therefore gets addicted to the
drug in the long run.
• Reduced immunity
Studies show that marijuana affects the immunity
in the body because the system becomes less
sensitive to external agents, even to harmful
microbes. Marijuana may affect the T-cells in the
immune system of the lungs.
• Risk of bronchitis
Prolonged use of marijuana may cause respiratory
issues and increase the risk of bronchitis. The
chemicals produced, as a result of combustion
while smoking, get deposited in the lungs and this
leads to bronchitis condition.
Marijuana is one of the most harmful substances
that causes addiction and affects the most
productive and formative periods of people. It is,
therefore, sensible to stay away from this drug.
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source:
http://cliniconomy..com/2013/09/how-marijuanaganja-affects-your-health.html?m=1