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here to look up Bible PassagesThis message was written by a medical doctor who is also affiliated with the College of Medicine with one of our better known universities.
You hear people say, "Legalize Pot! Marijuana is not an addicting drug. Pot does not lead to hard drugs." On campuses, from students, from other adults these statements are heard. But are they true? Does marijuana lead to other drugs? Can a person enjoy marijuana safely with no fear of escalation to more harmful drugs? These questions about marijuana cannot be answered without some insight into the nature of the drug and of the people who use it. It is not uncommon to hear the following defense of marijuana: that it is not addicting, that it does not produce the tolerance, the need for increasing amounts of the drug to produce the same effect, that it is less harmful to the body than a tobacco cigarette. These statements ignore a very important subject - the person using the drug. Both these factors - the drug and the user must be explored to find out if marijuana leads to other drugs.
Is the drug itself harmful? Well, until recently, even scientists knew of only a few harmful effects of the drug. It produced irritation of the nose, the eyes and the lungs; it produced a state of intoxication similar, but not identical with alcohol; people on marijuana lose depth perception and critical judgement earlier than those using alcohol. Marijuana does not produce psychological dependence, nor does tolerance develop. Scientists are quick to state that very little is known about the drug. Recently THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, has been isolated and this has enabled scientists to learn more about this drug. The information from many centers studying marijuana indicates that the drug is not as harmless as was assumed. At the Texas Research Institute for Mental Sciences at Houston, experiments have shown that
large doses of THC in laboratory animals have an effect very similar to LSD. So the apparent difference in danger between these two drugs would therefore seem to be only the difference in the amount commonly taken. Other experiments have shown that THC, when given to a pregnant monkey, can be found in the blood of the unborn baby. That is to say that the placentas, normally a barrier between the mother and the baby, will not stop the passage of THC in the blood stream of the offspring.
In addition to the effects of a physical nature, there are increasing reports of disturbed behavior, mental illness, in people using marijuana. Although these behavior changes usually follow prolonged use, there are cases on record of acute psychosis, or insanity, produced by very limited exposure to marijuana. As more research is done, further harmful effects of this drug may be discovered.
But what about the other side of the coin, the person who uses marijuana. It is theoretically possible for a person to smoke marijuana under laboratory conditions and not be inclined to follow this with other drugs. But this is not the way that marijuana is used. In an atmosphere of furtive experimentation, the marijuana is passed from person to person, each competing with the other for a larger effect, each pressuring the other to "get higher", each trying to be bolder than the other. Peer group pressure, the desire for new experiences, the desire to out-perform ones associates - all these exert the most powerful influences on the user of marijuana to go on to stronger drugs.
It is also important to consider that possessing and using marijuana is a crime, in most states a felony. One is, therefore, in violation of the law to use the drug. It is a known fact that people who are supplying marijuana are usually suppliers of other drugs: amphetamines, LSD, heroin. So when a person puts himself into contact with a pusher of marijuana, he is likely encountering the whole spectrum of drug abuse. Marijuana has been called the door into the drug sub-culture. Even though psychological dependence does not develop to marijuana, a very strong psychological dependence on the drug commonly develops. The nature of this is uncertain, perhaps influenced by peer group pressure, perhaps an indication of personality instability in the person who would use marijuana, but it is probably related to the tendency of some young people to resort to the use of drugs to solve or escape their problems. Adolescence is a time of turmoil and of personality development in any child. Since the use of drugs creates problems for the user, the use of drugs as a problem-solving technique greatly increases the likelihood of habitual use and of escalation.
Finally, the factor of negative value scales causes many young users of marijuana to go on up the ladder to other drugs. Many of the young people in the drug abuse community subscribe to a set of values which places a premium on self-destruction. It is common to hear a person in the drug scene boast about almost killing himself with an overdoes of drugs. Others brag about the physical discomfort they experienced while on a speed trip. When a young person in using marijuana surrounds himself with people whose value judgements are warped to this degree, the chances are very great that these negative values will result in his moving up to heroin, amphetamines, or other drugs.
Does the use of marijuana lead to the use of other drugs? With the information available you can't afford to bet your life that it doesn't. We believe it does. This underscores. the reasons for God's condemnation of drunkenness, whether it is produced by alcohol or drug abuse. The Bible says that "they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God" Galatians 5:19-21. Repentance and correction of life, however, is always possible if we are willing to turn to God on his terms. (II Peter 3:9,10).
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