Legalizing Weed Essay

Submitted By lil_brizzle
Words: 865
Pages: 4

What Should Weed-Ooh PT. 2 Over the past few years there has been this talk of legalizing marijuana. Finally, on January 1, 2014, Colorado opened the doors of the first weed store to the public. The only limitations to this place is you have to be twenty-one or over and you are limited to only buying a ounce per visit. Supposedly the state of Colorado made over one million dollars on the first day of the business. Now the talk has come about doing this for the rest of the states. Some people are for it and some people are against the idea. This is a drug but some people say there are more pros than cons to this plant. Is this true? Can legalizing this plant help out the economy?

The plant of marijuana can be used in many different ways. You can roll it in either a joint or a blunt. Some people prefer to use a pipe or a bong and some people even smoke it out of fruits. You can even bake the plant is any of your favorite desserts and eat it just by itself. This plant has been known to help out children and adults that tend to suffer from seizures. This is where the “pros” come in. From the research that I have done and the documentaries that I have watched it talks about how this plant can treat migraines and it actually slows down the progression of alzheimer’s. Cannabidiol makes up about eighty percent of the marijuana and this is the “ingredient” that stops cancer cells from spreading. A study was performed and those who had depression were given so marijuana and they it actually lowered their symptoms. For people with arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis it helped relieve pain and helped them get a better sleep.

This plant also has negative effects on the brain and body. Marijuana has effect on the memory, thinking, concentration, sensory and time perception, and coordinated movement. Marijuana also affects brain development, and when it is used heavily by young people, its effects on thinking and memory may last a long time or even be permanent. Marijuana is also an irritant to the lungs, and frequent marijuana smokers can have many of the same respiratory problems experienced by tobacco smokers, such as daily cough and phlegm, more frequent chest illness, and a higher risk of lung infections. Marijuana also raises heart rate by twenty to one hundred percent shortly after smoking; this effect can last up to three hours. High doses of marijuana can actually cause paranoia and hallucinations and this can worsen it for the people that have schizophrenia. “Marijuana use during pregnancy is associated with increased risk of neurobehavioral problems in babies. Because THC and other compounds in marijuana mimic the body’s own endocannabinoid chemicals, marijuana use by pregnant mothers may alter the developing endocannabinoid system in the brain of the fetus. Consequences for the child may include problems with attention, memory, and problem solving.” ( drugabuse.com) The downside of smoking weed is that if you do it for pain or for depression once the high is gone all the pain and thoughts come back. You’d have to be a constant smoker and this could risk your daily activities. Driving while high can be dangerous because it impairs your