Marijuana and your Health

Why is Dope illegal?

Probably the best answer is one born of cynicism (or observation & experience?) - the government can regulate and impose excise on alcohol and tobacco for the vast majority of consumers of those products.  If there was a mechanism for marijuana to have excise placed upon it, I am sure that the government would have legalised, or at least decriminalised it long ago.

The more clinically operational answer is that the active phase of the psycho-active component, is essentially not detectable by level.  In the recently introduced road-side saliva tests, the test is either positive or negative.  Contrast this with alcohol where blood concentration is quantifiable.

Let's get some of the myths out of the way first!

Myth 1 - Marijuana is better than alcohol

By health effects and long term neurological damage, no it is not.  Rather than going into the myriad arguments, let's just leave it at, "both are not good for your health in both the short and long term".

Myth 2 - Driving high is OK

Both alcohol and marijuana increase reaction time, especially in high pressure, multiple variable decision processes.  Driving along on a two lane road in a straight line is pretty low in the required processes.  Add another vehicle beside you and a car failing to give way coming from a side road and all of a sudden, there are too many variables to process in either a drunk or drugged mind to make the best choices.  It is in these rapidly evolving situations that a clear head is required to avoid an accident and it is precisely in these circumstances where most impaired driver accidents and fatalities occur.

Myth 3 - I drive better when I'm high

OK, let's apply some observation here to negate this.  Anyone who has been drunk or drugged can typically identify another driver who is impaired, right?  Doesn't logic make the same true of all who drive impaired?

I hear it often said that people can see the road better, drive safer etc. when high BUT the perception of their level of performance is similarly impaired.  Meth heads do not think they are showing their high, same with drunks, grass etc.  To correctly observe a level of impairment requires that the observer is NOT IMPAIRED.

Here is the blunt truth - drunk or drugged, your ability to make rational and fast decisions is impaired.  Your proprioception (knowing your position and relative positions in space) is reduced significantly.  Your higher logic functions are not active.  That is what high is!

Myth 4 - Grass is better than Tobacco

Both are high in tar, marijuana is generally higher.  Tobacco has a heap of chemicals added, marijuana has a heap too which are liberated by the combustion process.  Marijuana is NOT a cleaner product than tobacco - the smoke produced from both are very high in particulates, both are very caustic and both will damage your lung tissues and trigger plaque formation in the blood vessels.

Myth 5 - Eating marijuana has less mental problems than smoking

Whilst eating (hash butter) marijuana is certainly avoiding the smoke, the active ingredient's effects within the body are the same.

Aspergillum (white/grey mould) - a significant risk

 In recent years, there have been a number of cases of grey mould effecting street supply due to poor handing / drying etc.  The spores of these moulds survive the combustion and filtration processes as described above.  If they reach the lungs, pulmonary invasive aspergillosis is the result.  There is no effective cure and a lung transplant is required before the lungs are completely rendered useless (death). 

If a 'stash' has any musty smell or has any form of grey or white mould, DO NOT use it!  You are risking a very nasty condition which will result in a lingering and painful death.

What can I do if I don't want to give up?

Stop driving before getting high - Here is where responsible use is required.  Just like alcohol, plan your day so you do not endanger others or yourself.  If you need to go out during the day, do your driving straight and put your keys away before getting the smoke out.  Remember that like alcohol, you feel straight long before you are straight - double your time, or consider the time from first use to being straight as the real half way point towards being straight.

So what is safest?

If you do choose to use marijuana, consider this list from least to most negative health effects.  Eating THC products like hash butter have the fewest health impacts.  Using a vaporiser which avoids actual combustion is the next least harmful to your overall health, followed by water pipes, and lastly by straight combustion (joints, pipes etc.).  Using a pipe with one or even two roll-your-own filters in line will cut down many airborne particles whilst having little impact on the effect.  All smoke is caustic and all smoke produces destruction of lung tissue - emphysema.

Have some time off

Whether it is alcohol or other substances, having some time off to let your body catch a break is a very good thing to do.  For every two days on, the ideal is three days off.  Failing this, aim for two straight days a week just to give your brain and body a chance to recover.

Law Enforcement Notes

Police in most Australian States and many overseas jurisdictions are now using road-side saliva testing which WILL detect any active THC in a body.  Generally, these will be positive for 24 hours (up to 72 hours  under the right circumstances) after last use although many, many factors are involved.  Consider 18 hours after getting straight to be a MINIMUM time before your chances of detection start falling.  Unlike alcohol, where blood concentrations can be determined and correlate to performance  levels, there is no graduated test, it is a yes (busted) or no.

Eating mints, coke, soap, gargling mouth wash, neurofen, paracetamol, drinking olive oil etc,.. all are not going to effect the test one bit.  Many of the supposed countermeasures I have heard will actually create a stronger positive!  Most police jurisdictions are running on a zero tolerance policy to a positive saliva test and all are legally able to demand a sample from a driver.

In Summary

• If choosing not to stick to legal substances; recognise that performance is impaired by grass and that there is no safe level of high, the more complex the decision process, the worse it is.  Read that in normal situations, you can function relatively well when high, but in emergencies, your processing time is WAY longer.

• Think carefully about the method of delivery and ensure that the material’s condition is excellent. 

• Educate yourself and your family on these points and access the many good, clear and relatively impartial articles found through the web. 

• Please give your body a few days off on a regular basis to allow some level of recovery and to prevent significant cumulative damage compounding the health challenges that can result