[shrinkermd]

FYI

[xrp]

Users of marijuana before the age of 17

Users of marijuana before the age of 17 should be put into serious bootcamp rehab. After age 17, they're adults, they should be allowed to do what they want, on their own property, as long as they don't violate the rights of others.

[presidio9]

Say old chum, have you heard that none other than Ozzie Osborn himself says that pot smoking led his son Jack to try harder drugs?

[Lexington Green]

Beer

[thoughtomator]

More active imaginations in the psycho community bought and paid for by the WoD department. Of course those who use MJ are more likely to use other drugs than those that don't; they are farther along on the path of realization that their government and schools have been lying to them all along, and are trying to discover the truth for themselves.

[CO_dreamer]

#1, what the hell is RAND doing research like that for?
#2, what percentage of first time pot-smokers used alcohol or tobacco before the first smoked pot?

And as a followup to #2, why aren't alcohol and cigarettes considered as 'gateway drugs' to marijuana?

[presidio9]

The fundamental flaw in the logic of potheads is that they confuse psychology with true science. When they constantly demand proof of a causal relationship, they neglect the fact that human nature is not quantifiable like a chemistry experiment. The so-called "gateway theory" is nothing more than common sense.

[GovernmentShrinker]

The studies on early alcohol use show a massive correlation between age at onset of use and lifelong alocholism. I expect if they ran the alcohol studies on twins, they'd confirm it's a causative factor as well.

The simple fact is that the years from adolescence through early adulthood are the primary period of learning emotional coping skills. Those who begin using mind-altering substances during this period, to deal with stress, anxiety, depression, etc., are cheating their way out of the difficult process of learning emotional coping skills, i.e. they aren't using the mind-altering substances in addition to all the normal developmental processes of adolesecence and early adulthood, they're using them INSTEAD of a key one of those processes. In addition, their substance abuse generally ensures that they fall in with a peer group which is also skipping the normal process of emotional development. They then arrive at the greater stresses of adulthood without those skills and, as much neurological research has shown, with much less malleable brains than younger people -- for those reasons, it's extremely difficult to catch up on learning the coping skills past college age.

Too bad our society isn't ready to face the fact that alcohol is a major "gateway" drug too -- and probably a much bigger one than marijuana.

[MrLeRoy]

They assumed that twins, having been raised in the same household, would have environmental experiences that were highly concordant.

And that's where they screwed up.

[Jeff Gordon]

[luckystarmom]

I have identical twins, and they are complete opposites. I think it may be more about the twin's personality than it is about marijuana.

I think it is probably that one of the twins is more of a risk taker, and the other one isn't.

Identical twins may have the same DNA, but they are completely different people.

[aruanan]

While concluding that there was a causal relationship between early marijuana use and subsequent other drug use, the authors could only speculate about why the association exists

They showed an association. They didn't show a causal relationship. If they claimed that in their paper, they're going to get laughed out of conferences--well, unless their conference time is spent in the company of true believers.

[aruanan]

Critics of the gateway theory say that persons predisposed to use hard drugs would likely do so regardless of whether they used marijuana first - marijuana just happens to be the most available so it comes first.

It's also interesting to see the way this is set up: marijuana is either a gateway drug (that is, there is something inherently insidious about marijuana itself, leading its users on to more and more dangerous drugs) or marijuana is used by those who just happen to be inherently predisposed to use drugs.

A twin test correctly done would help to rule out the latter if it showed that the drug use or non-use of one twin tended to parallel that of the other, widely separated, twin. This would demonstrate that there could be something inherent in a predisposition to drug use. As described, the experiment did not do this. It simply showed that if a person started using drugs at an early age, he tended to use other drugs later and that if a person didn't start using drugs at an early age, he wasn't using them later. This still doesn't mean, though, that anyone is inherently predisposed by non-environmental factors to start using drugs.

[jmc813]

WOD Ping

[nickcarraway]

ping

[shrinkermd]

I have read almost all the posts. Seemingly, some of them are based on faulty information. Below is the section from the Merck Manual on marijuana. It covers most of the controversies and seems acceptable to the peer reviewers who publish this book.

"Marijuana (cannabis) use is widespread. Surveys of high school students have periodically shown increases, decreases, and then increases in its use. In the United States, marijuana is commonly smoked in the form of cigarettes (joints) made from the stems, leaves, and flowering tops of the dried plant (Cannabis sativa or Cannabis indica). Marijuana is also used as hashish, the pressed resin (tarry substance) of the plant. The active ingredient of marijuana is tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which occurs in many variations, the most active being delta-9-THC.

"As with the use of alcohol, marijuana can be used intermittently by many people without causing noticeable social or psychologic dysfunction or dependence. However, some people become dependent on marijuana, and among those who become dependent, many will exhibit the characteristics of addiction.

Symptoms and Complications

Marijuana depresses brain activity, producing a dreamy state in which ideas seem disconnected and uncontrollable. It is mildly psychedelic, causing time, color, and spatial perceptions to distort and be enhanced. Colors may seem brighter, sounds may seem louder, and appetite may be increased. Marijuana generally relieves tension and provides a sense of well-being. The sense of exaltation, excitement, and inner joyousness (a high) seems to be related to the setting in which the drug is taken--such as whether the smoker is alone or in a group and the prevailing mood. Motor abilities decrease during marijuana use, so driving or operating heavy equipment is dangerous.

People who use large quantities of marijuana may become confused and disoriented. They may develop a toxic psychosis, not knowing who they are, where they are, or what time it is. Some people, particularly those with mental illness, are especially susceptible to these effects, and there is compelling evidence that schizophrenia may become worse with marijuana use. Occasionally, panic reactions occur, particularly in new users. Other effects include an increased heart rate, bloodshot eyes, and dry mouth.

Prolonged heavy use of marijuana among men may reduce testosterone levels, the size of the testes, and sperm count. Long-term use among women may lead to irregular menstrual cycles. However, these effects do not always occur, and the effects on fertility are uncertain. Pregnant women who use marijuana may have smaller babies than nonusers, and delta-9-THC passes into the breast milk and may intoxicate a breastfed infant.

Marijuana is eliminated from the body slowly over several weeks, so withdrawal reactions tend to be mild. Heavy users who stop abruptly may experience jerkiness and insomnia.

Diagnosis and Treatment

Urine test results for marijuana generally remain positive for several days or weeks after use, even for casual users. For regular users, test results may remain positive for several weeks or longer while the drug is slowly released from body fat. Urine testing is an effective means of identifying marijuana use, but a positive urine test result means only that the person has used marijuana; it does not prove that the user is currently impaired (intoxicated).

For those who want to stop using marijuana, counseling may be helpful. However, success relies heavily on the user's motivation to stop and for some willingness to disassociate from his social circle of regular users.

I underlined the section on Schizophrenia. I once ran a large dual disability service where Schizophrenia and substance abuse were the norm rather than the exception.

[A CA Guy]

WARNING: For lurkers!
It is true that drug addict advocates do back illegal drugs on this site in some tiny numbers.
They do not reflect conservatism, nor does their approval of other vices or anarchy suggest any normal association with average conservatism. It is a sub-culture forcing themselves on the main culture much the same ways as the gays do. They often also have the ACLU joining their cause and you know they are not conservative, so be WARNED...
And of course, JUST SAY NO TO DRUGS.

[Theophilus]

The gateway for all illicit drugs, marajuana included or not, is bad company. Keep your twins away from bad company and they'll never have a problem with drugs.

[LittleJoe]

ROTFLMAO!!!

Pay people to "study" an issue and deliver the results you want.

Had to go all the way to the bottom of the planet to do this?

Man, you drug warriors are really grasping at straws!!!

[presidio9]

bump

[Kevin Curry]

This merely confirms what common sense has always said about marijuana use.

Don't expect the pro-dopers to cave and agree, however, regardless of the objectivity of the study. Their obsession controls their point-of-view and they will tolerate and admit no evidence in support of the gateway theory.

Incidentally, the report could have also pointed up the clear and undeniable correlation between shizophrenia and marijuana use in young adults.