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Cannabis is a cannabinoid drug that comes from the Cannabis Sativa plant. The total number of various cannabinoids 1is still unknown. They are mostly known as marijuana. This drug can either be smoked. Cannabis comes in different forms. It can be in the form of dried plant leaves, flower heads, brown resinous material known as the ‘hash,’ crumbly, and potent oil known as the hash oil.
Cannabis contains two chemicals: THC or delta9 2tetrahydrocannabinol and CBD, non-psychoactive compounds. When the user uses these drugs, they feel ‘high,’ which is caused due to the compounds present in the cannabis. The THC travels to the brain of a human from the bloodstream and disrupts normal brain functioning, which later causes certain intoxicating effects.
Cannabis use often causes drug-induced psychotic symptoms responsible for the psychotic illness. Marijuana is the most common type of cannabis used among most drug users. In this article, you will learn what type of drug is marijuana and other related information.
1. Different Types Of Cannabis
There are many different types of cannabis found in the Cannabis Sativa plant3. But only some of them are known.
1.1. Marijuana
It is the most common drug in the cannabis plant and its least concentrated form. Marijuana is formed from the dried leaves and flowers of the cannabis plant. It looks like chopped grass, and the color of this drug ranges from green to brown after drying.
The flowers of this plant have the most potent chemicals responsible for abrupt behavior after smoking marijuana. This drug is often smoked from a water pipe or hand-rolled cigarette, also known as a joint.
1.2. Hashish
It is the small blocks of all the dried parts of the cannabis resin. They are light brown colored, and some of them can be black in color. The concentration of THC 4in hashish concerning marijuana is high.
1.3. Hash Oil
The hash oil is a thick oily liquid extracted from the dried hashish. This oil can be brown in color, and some can be black. This drug is spread over the tip of cigarettes or windpipe-like toppings and then smoked. The concentration of hash oil is more than the other drugs of cannabis.
There are two other types of cannabis drugs.
1.4. Synthetic Cannabis
This is the most widespread form of cannabis used in the past few years. Synthetic cannabis is formed from chemicals designed to activate the same chemical systems in the brain. The THC that works for marijuana has similar physical and psychological effects as synthetic cannabis. However, this drug can have more unknown effects, and they are expected to be more harmful than the normal effects of cannabis.
1.5. Medical Cannabis
Doctors often prefer medical cannabis to treat a medical condition’s symptoms or to withdraw the side effects of certain medicinal treatments.
Effects Of Cannabis Use
Cannabis is a depressant type of drug. However, all depressant drugs are not meant to make you feel depressed. Instead, it travels from your bloodstream, reaches your brain, and slows down the central nervous system. The messages going in between the brain and your body will slow down.
However, certain conditions are required for a person to feel the effects of cannabis use. Not all marijuana users will have the same cannabis effects. The effects of cannabis use can vary depending on the person’s mood or the atmosphere the person is in. The effects of cannabis are expected to last for at least three to four hours after smoking cannabis.
A person can have
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loss of inhibition
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drowsiness
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reddened eyes
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increased appetite
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low concentration and lack of memory
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increased talkativeness
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feeling relaxed and wellbeing
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having anxiety disorders
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paranoia
If the illegal drugs are used in larger doses, then the effects of cannabis can increase, and it can cause
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restlessness
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hallucinations
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detachment from the reality
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excited
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confusions
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nausea
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physical effects
What Type Of Drug is Marijuana
Marijuana is the dried leaves and flower parts from the Cannabis sativa plant, also known as the Cannabis indica plant. This plant has a mind-altering chemical which is known as THC chemical. Marijuana is the most commonly used type of drug after tobacco and alcohol.
With the use of vaping devices, most teens start smoking THC. More than 4% of the students from the 12th grade smoke marijuana regularly. According to research in 2018, more than 11.8 million young people smoked marijuana in one year.
However, some countries approve of the use of marijuana5. But they only approve of medical marijuana use, which has changed many adults’ views.
Dabbing is smoking marijuana extracts has been in high use for the past few years. The extracts of marijuana can come in different forms. It can be extracted from hash oil or honey oil, wax, and shatter.
The extracts from marijuana are potent in delivering huge amounts of THC to the body and slowing down the brain’s working. Smoking this type of marijuana can send the user to the emergency room at once. The making of marijuana extracts is also very hard. It can cause fire and explosion, due to which some serious incidents can happen.
How Is Marijuana Smoked
Marijuana use is very high among young adults. They smoke this drug in a hand-rolled cigarette which is known as joints. Also, they smoke this stuff in pipes or in water bongs which are called bongs.
Smoking marijuana in blunts or emptied cigars has been used in some places. In this process, the cigar is partially refilled with marijuana. However, some people avoid inhaling the smoke. They do it by using vaporizers.
The vaporizers pull the active ingredients, including THC, from the marijuana and then collect the vapor to another unit. The user of this device inhales the vapor and not the smoke. You will even find some of the vaporizers using a liquid marijuana extract.
Some people are so addicted to marijuana that they mix this drug in their foods. Mixing marijuana in cookies, brownies, and candy and brewing it in tea is common among major addicts to marijuana. However, a new method has been found: smoking or eating the different THC-rich resins.
Health Effects From Marijuana
The THC released from smoking marijuana can disrupt the body and brain functions. It has a wide range of effects, both physical and mental health problems.
1. Physical Effects Of Cannabis
The smoke from marijuana travels from your bloodstream to your brain. On its way, it can give you great problems.
1.1. Increased Risk Of Heart Attack
When someone smokes marijuana from cigars or vapor, it raises the heart rate when the smoke enters the body. The faster heart rate lasts up to three hours after the last puff. This induces a great risk for the chances of a heart attack. Especially older people who have heart problems or weak hearts can collapse immediately.
1.2. Breathing Problems
The chemicals released from marijuana can irritate the lungs and cause breathing problems. Even smoking tobacco can cause breathing problems.
In addition, smoking cannabis, you can have daily coughs, regular lung illnesses, and a higher risk of lung infections.
1.3. Child Development
If pregnant women come under marijuana use, there is a high chance that the child will have both brain and behavioral problems. The smoke from marijuana can even affect some of the developing parts of the fetus’s brain.
In addition, a child who has been exposed to marijuana will more likely have memory problems. Even some THC chemicals will be mixed with the breast milk of the nursing mothers. Excess amounts of THC chemicals in breast milk can affect the child’s brain development.
1.4. Nausea And Vomiting
On regular and long-term marijuana use, some people will develop Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome. As a result, it will cause a regular cycle of severe nausea6, dehydration, and vomiting, and sometimes, they will require immediate medical attention.
2. Mental Health Problems
People with long-term marijuana use will have mental problems. It can cause the person several problems. The symptoms include
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Temporary paranoia
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Temporary hallucinations
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Schizophrenia- a mental disorder that can reflect paranoia,
Smoking marijuana can even cause you anxiety and depression; in the worst cases, it can tempt your mind with suicidal thoughts.
Is Marijuana Addictive
If someone is taking marijuana, it can lead that person to develop substance use disorder. It is a medical illness where the person cannot stop using marijuana. As a result, it causes health and social problems in their life.
Substance abuse is known as addiction, and people who take this substance are called addicts. So, if someone is taking marijuana, they will develop a marijuana use disorder. It is seen that people taking marijuana before the age of 18 are more prone to developing marijuana use disorder.
However, if someone realizes the substance use disorder and tries to quit, that person will face mild withdrawal symptoms, resulting in difficult health effects.
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anxiety
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decreased appetite
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cravings
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sleeplessness
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grouchiness
People who use marijuana for a long time will feel very uncomfortable with their life. That person will feel
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poor mental health
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relationship problems
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poor physical health
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low life satisfaction
Can People Passive Smoke Marijuana
Your body will not show any sign of marijuana intake due to passive smoking. Even if you are standing near someone exhaling marijuana, your body will most likely reject it. However, your body may take the marijuana THC chemicals if you are in a room inhaling air for hours.
Similarly, a secondhand marijuana smoker will not experience much of the confined state. However, if they are in an enclosed room and smoking for hours, there is a chance that the person having secondhand marijuana will be high.
But, there is not much known if secondhand marijuana smoke has similar side effects as secondhand smoke tobacco. However, secondhand marijuana smoke can equally damage the heart and lungs as tobacco smoke.
Short-Term Side Effects
If a person is smoking marijuana, then the THC passes very quickly from the lungs to the bloodstream. THC is responsible for carrying chemicals to the brain and other organs of the body. The human body will absorb more THC when the person drinks or eat. In this case, the effects last only 30 minutes to 1 hour.
The THC is responsible for acting on specific brain cell receptors, which normally react to the natural THC-like chemicals. The natural chemicals in the body play a vital role in normal brain development and proper functioning.
When released in the brain, THC chemicals activate the part of the brain with the highest number of receptors. This causes the person to feel “high.” The person may even feel other effects of cannabis after activating the receptors.
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mood swings
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impaired memory
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altered sense
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altered sense of time
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difficulty in problem-solving
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hallucinations
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psychosis
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delusions
Long-Term Side Effects
Marijuana is known to affect the brain the most. If a teenager starts smoking marijuana, the drug abuse may impair the child’s thinking ability, learning functions, memory, and other serious side effects. The person’s brain will not be able to build connections where they need to.
There is no evidence suggesting the overall lasting time of marijuana effects. Some of the effects may last for a few hours, while some effects may last forever.
Health Risks Imposed From Long-Term Cannabis Use
Due to this drug abuse, there can be several physical and mental effects that can tear you apart both physically and mentally.
The probable side effects can be
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asthma, chest infections, throat cancer, shortness of breath
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depression, weak immune system, frequent infections
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poor concentration, learning problems, and memory loss
Other than this, several side effects and increased risk factors can cause your life.
1. Can Cause Cancer
High potency marijuana has a high concentration of cancer-causing agents known as carcinogenic. They are present more in cannabis than any other illegal drug. It is proven that cannabis substance use disorders can cause cancer in the lungs and the aerodigestive tract, including the respiratory and upper digestive tract. So, if you smoke any illegal drug like marijuana for a long time, then it is sure that you will be caught with cancer cells.
2. Cannabis Tolerance And Dependence
Any person who uses cannabis regularly will develop a tolerance for the drug. As a result, it will take a larger amount of this illegal drug to get the effects of cannabis. Due to this, many people develop marijuana use disorders or a physical dependency on cannabis.
3. Smoking Cannabis At A Young Age
If you start smoking cannabis early on, you are more likely to have health complications.
It may impose mental health or general life problems at school, work, or home. You will also develop memory problems, and most of the time, you suffer from depression.
Can Anyone Overdose Marijuana
An overdose means using more than enough drugs to impose any threat to life. However, there are no reports of dying from a marijuana overdose. But, if someone smokes this illicit drug with THC levels, they have uncomfortable side effects. In these cases, the smoker passes through anxiety and paranoia, and in some cases, the patient passes through psychotic reactions. If anyone has these issues, then they will require immediate medical attention.
A person can develop psychotic symptoms if the addict smokes or eats marijuana without knowing the capability. Some people actually do not know that their bodies will not get affected by eating cannabis so fast. Some people eat marijuana, thinking they have not eaten enough or gotten high faster. Due to this, some cannabis dependence users fall seriously ill and end their lives on the verge of death.
Cannabis And Psychosis
Some research shows that cannabis use often worsens a person’s psychotic symptoms. In some cases of cannabis smoking, people who are especially predisposed to psychosis can develop psychotic symptoms if they have someone in their family history with psychosis problems.
The symptoms of this issue usually appear much quicker and can last for a long time. In between these, the person can pass through memory problems, hallucinations, and disorientation. These are the symptoms of people who have just started with this condition. But for smokers who frequently have psychosis, the effects for them last much longer.
Predisposition to psychotic illness people use drugs; it triggers the first episode of the disabling condition. Some reports also tell that more people are now developing psychotic illnesses.
Certain symptoms characterize people who have developed psychotic illnesses. Some of the users may think they have special powers, which is often referred to as delusion. The same person can have hallucinations. He may hear voices or see things that do not even exist. The person may have a thought disorder. It means the user can have a hard time managing their own emotions. Most drug users who develop this illness have problems distinguishing between real and fake things.
Cannabis use makes the psychotic symptoms worse, and it often lowers the person’s chances of recovery from the psychotic episodes. Most people who have psychotic symptoms generally have higher chances of getting hospitalized for psychosis. However, the treatment they will receive is generally less effective.
Is Cannabis A Gateway Drug
There is some hypothesis of researchers who claims that cannabis use may help increase the chances of trying harder drugs. Regular users get habituated to the regular drugs that they use. So, to get higher in a short time, they try harder drugs. These marijuana drugs generally have a higher concentration of THC.
This can degenerate the health more, and the person can have more adverse side effects. However, some side effects tell that there are no proofs that cannabis is a gateway drug. But once the person develops a dependence on drugs and alcohol, then the person can have a serious mental illness.
Cannabis is illegal in most states, and due to this, the drug alcohol depends person may find themselves in a place where they can be caught with individuals selling an illegal drug. So, drug use will not only impose health effects, but it can also ruin your life.
Later, in 2020 the National Institute On Drug Abuse released a study that states that marijuana is a gateway to some harder drugs. However, it may not be the same case for most cannabis users. Other illegal drugs are also responsible for being the gateway to higher drugs. Even alcohol and nicotine affect the brain and can make you crave more alcohol.
Bottom-Line
Marijuana is derived from the marijuana plant known as Cannabis Sativa. When cannabis smoke is inhaled, you will face many complications. Even if you take it for the first time, you may face a phase in which you will not be yourself and end up losing your close ones.
In addition, consuming cannabis is considered illegal, and if you are found with marijuana effects or other drugs, the cops may question you. Also, it will cause many problems in disease control. So it is highly recommended that you do not consume marijuana or other drugs.
By reading this article, now we hope you have got to know what type of drug is marijuana and what it can be its complications if you take it.
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Last Updated on by Sathi Chakraborty, MSc Biology
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