Thank God (no, not the poster of this topic) that I live in Canada. Here in 2005 weed is going to be decriminalized because of the lack of hard data (yes, government research has been done) indicating any serious detrimental effects.The majority of people responding to this post demonstrate how pathetically uninformed they are about this topic.
I, personally have been smoking pot for 38 years and I’m waiting to experience any of the negative effects the repondents of this post so vehemently state will affect any pot smoker.
While being a pot smoker I have won the provincial olympic lifting championships; set a 500 lb. squat, a 515 lb. deadlift and a 295 lb. bench at a bodyweight of 174 lbs. and placed 3rd in the provincial bodybuilding championships (sans bb drugs) - and not a bitch tit in sight; or any stretch marks that all the pro roid, anti pot respondents probably sport.
So much for pot’s testosterone lowering effects.
Accademically I have an Honours English and a Master’s of Education degree all earned while smoking pot. I have been a very successful teacher (oh my God, a pot smoking teacher; save the children) in both secondary and post secondary educational institutions for 26 years.
So much for pot’s brain damaging effects.
I have lifted for 40 years and still do so 3 times per week and presntly maintain a 31" waist.
So much for pot destroying motivation and eating habits.
I realize that the religious right (that’s who appears to be responding negatively to this thread as they use no scientific evidence to support their stance, only moral indignation) will condemn me as a braggart for listing my personal accomplishments, but I did so to let god (original post) know that you can succeed in any endeavour whether or not you smoke pot as the negative effects are grossly overstated.
To further impugn the naysayers of pot smoking I’ve included the results of a group of studies found on Medline that refute some of the posted arguments against pot use and indeed, may suggest that it is necessary for proper memory function, sleep and blood pressure.
The natural brain cannabinoid anandamide functions as a neurotransmitter. In 1991 it was shown that the properties of the cannabinoid receptors in the brain were not irreversibly altered in monkeys given chronic doses of THC and marijuana. (2) This toxicology study shows that marijuana is not a neurotoxin.
Cannabinoids, memory and sleep
A useful tool in the study of a neuroreceptor system is some molecule that prevents the neurotransmitter from binding to the receptor. That way you can figure out what the natural neurotranmsitter does by watching what happens when it can’t do it any more. A molecule that does this is called a receptor antagonist.
For THC, the cannabinoid synthesized by cannabis sativa and indica, and andandamide, the cannabinoid synthesized in the central nervous systems of most animals on Earth, the receptor antagonist is called SR141716. (3) SR141716 is like “anti-marijuana” – it enhances the same memory functions that the natural brain cannabinoid anandamide and THC inhibit through the cannabinoid receptor. (4)
SR141716 improves short term memory in rodents by blocking the CB1 cannabinoid receptor from binding to andandamide, not just THC. But anandamide is made by the brain naturally. Why would the brain be making a chemical – andandamide – that seems to inhibit short-term memory?
This question is partly answered by the effect of SR141716 on the sleep cycles of rats. (5) SR141716 administered to rats interrupts their sleep cycles, causing a deficit in both short-wave and REM sleep. This research indicates that cannabinoids are important in the brain’s regulation of the sleeping process.
The cost of improving short-term memory by blocking cannabinoids from the brain is deficient and delayed slow-wave and REM sleep. In studying marijuana, we have learned something important about the brain. Inhibition of short-term memory-related processes occurring in the hippocampus might be necessary for a healthy sleep cycle.
Cannabinoids and Alzheimer’s Disease
Another very intriguing link between natural cannabinoids and memory was found in the brains of people who died of Alzheimer’s disease. (6) The researchers discovered that the brains of people died of Alzheimer’s showed substantially less cannabinoid binding than shown by the brains of the control group. The abnormal absences of cannabinoid receptors weren’t located in regions correleated with the damage done by Alzhemier’s disease itself, so the researchers did not believe that the Alzheimer’s disease caused the disappearance of CB1 receptors.
The difference between the Alzheimer’s and control CB1 levels was the highest in the hippocampus, the same region of the brain where cannabinoids help regulate short-term memory. The Alzheimer’s brains showed binding to the test cannabinoid that was reduced by 49% compared to the binding observed in the control brains.
There is not yet an explanation for this difference. Research (7,8) showed that in rats, cannabinoid receptors and the ability to respond to anandamide (and THC) develop gradually from birth until adulthood, and then remain fairly constant as the animals age.
Cannabinoids and Circulation
The “endogenous” cannabinoid anandamide was shown to lower blood pressure and heart rate through the CB1 receptor. (9) The CB1 antagonist SR141716 was shown to block the blood-pressure-lowering effects of anandamide. The researchers guessed that the CB1 receptors were lowering blood pressure by vasodilation through the sympathetic nervous system. The manner in which anandamide and THC dilate small blood vessels in the brain was studied in (10,11).
No doubt after reading the studies the morally right would argue that it refers to “endogenous anandamide” the body’s own thc and not exogenous marijuana. But,as we are all A-typical there is a high probability that many pot smokers, such as myself, may be deficient in anandamide and that is why we gravitate towards pot as our drug of choice.
So, god (original post) if you choose to stop smoking pot do it because it is your choice and not because it is argued to be morally wrong.
