The Pros and Cons of using weed

Marijuana, or weed, as it is best known, has a lot of stigma attached to it. Bojana Petkovic, Project Manager at Loud Cloud Health told the Herald of some of the health pros and cons of weed …

The pros of weed according to Bojana Petkovic:

1. Weed helps people to get off drugs: “Smoking marijuana helps reduce the tensions caused by drug abuse. Legalising marijuana would help a lot of people fight their demons, simply because their brains would function better. Eight out of 10 doctors agree marijuana should be fully legalised.”

2. Benefits of weed for bone health: “Weed can help strengthen your bones and speed up the healing process. Trabecular bones will be especially grateful for the weed treatment, and they are vital for our health seeing as this is where blood cells are made.”

3. Multiple defences against symptoms of multiple sclerosis: “Stiffness and spasms are very much decreased if one includes cannabis in the treatment, and muscle tone gets better as well. Marijuana has anti-inflammatory effects, which comes in handy, to say the least, in fighting the auto-inflammatory reaction of the immune system.”

4. Dealing with diabetes: “Diabetes 2 is not frequent among marijuana consumers. Legalisation of marijuana would enable a greater number of people to have a lower fasting insulin level. Weed consumers have 16 per cent lower fasting insulin levels than those who don’t use weed.”

5. Marijuana fights depression: “Marijuana has such power over depression, anxiety, and insomnia. It mimics common antidepressants, but without the problematic side effects.”

6. Medical marijuana benefits for treating dementia: “This is where THC comes under focus, especially if applied in the early stages when it prevents cell death. Agitation and aggression are very much decreased. So, does weed kill brain cells when you smoke it? Not in this case. The effect of THC keeps the cells safe and sound.”

7. ADHD disorder can be controlled with Cannabis: “Cannabis treats nausea and insomnia, which is common with ADHD, and reduces other severe symptoms such as depression and hyperactivity.”

8. Weed makes the pain go away: “One of the medical benefits that marijuana is famous for is its pain-relieving properties. Weed works wonders for different types of pain, from digestive and chronic pain. Over 60 per cent of patients use their medical marijuana for this purpose.”

9. Marijuana against migraines: “Migraines are more common in women —18 per cent of women suffer from them, as opposed to 9 per cent of men. The anti-inflammatory effects of weed really help treat neurogenic inflammation, and they prevent the attacks as well.”

10. Cancer treatment and cannabis: “It helps patients fight back nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy. The benefits of marijuana include increased appetite, and maintaining a healthy weight is one of the challenges for cancer patients. Studies show a reduction of pain, numbness, and weakness.”

The cons of weed according to Bojana Petkovic:

1. Potential addiction: “Even though marijuana is not considered addictive, about 30 per cent of weed consumers may develop some kind of cannabis use disorder (CUD). Regular and long-term use can make us too accustomed to some of the marijuana effects, and an abrupt stop may result in withdrawal symptoms such as headache, shakiness, extreme sweating, insomnia, and stomach pain.”

2. Cognitive skills at risk: “People who use cannabis regularly, may suffer from memory impairment. The brain could suffer some damage in the form of decreased neural efficiency called SME (Subsequent Memory Effect). Does marijuana kill brain cells in this case? It’s hard to put it bluntly, but the motoric skills are at risk as well because weed makes changes to networks responsible for motor learning and control.”

3. Weed is bad for your oral health: “One of the consequences of smoking weed that you may experience is dry mouth, which is a risk factor for developing cavities and gum disease. Smoking cannabis is often associated with mouth and neck cancer, too, while leukoplakia (precancerous lesions) also develop.”

4. Side effects of weed causes breathing problems: “Smoke is smoke, after all, and marijuana smoke contains ammonia and hydrogen cyanide among other dangerous chemicals. What’s more, some ingredients in marijuana smoke are even more concentrated than in ordinary tobacco smoke. Large air sacs that diminish your lung capacity can appear in the lungs as a consequence of smoking weed, too.”

5. Marijuana is not good for your heart: “On the one hand, weed is used for relaxation. On the other, recreational weed can cause tachycardia, dilated blood vessels, and make our beloved pump work harder than it is supposed to.”

6. Do not smoke weed during pregnancy: “Regardless of the fact that weed tends to reduce nausea, pregnant women are not advised to use it. Some of the most harmful effects of smoking weed while pregnant include the low birth weight of the newborn baby, cognitive damage, emotional disorders, and reduced ability to play or pay attention.”

7. THC in cannabis causes paranoia: “THC seems to be the main culprit for sensory perception and paranoid thoughts. Half of the participants using cannabis complained about paranoia, while only 30 per cent of the placebo group had similar objections.”

8. Weed consumers risk schizophrenia: “This too is blamed on THC, as it is known to encourage emotional withdrawal, blunted affect, and impairment of motoric skills.”

9. Cannabis lovers have low testosterone levels: “Cannabis can have an impact on sperm concentration. For example, regular marijuana use was connected to a decrease in sperm concentration of 28 per cent, and if it was combined with other recreational drugs, the percentage was as high as 52 per cent.”

10. Weed side effects and testicular cancer: “The statistics show cannabis can help develop an aggressive form of testicular cancer that occurs in younger men. Regular weed smokers are twice as likely to become ill with the disease. Heavy marijuana use can disrupt the hormonal balance, which can contribute to forming cancerous cells.”