Why Marijuana Shouldn't be Legal Recreationally? - Articles Analysis Essay

Published: 2021-07-01
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Hall, Wayne, and Louisa Degenhardt. "Adverse Health Effects Of Non-Medical Cannabis Use". The Lancet 374.9698 (2009): 1383-1391. Web. This study is comparable to the one by the one by Wang, Roosevelt, and Heard (630-633) which examined the effects of medical marijuana. However, this study looks at the negative health impacts of recreational cannabis. This study makes use of Thompson ReutersWeb of Science and PubMed sources to gather sources for a meta-analysis. The investigators note that heavy marijuana use significantly increases the risk of accidents, poisoning, psychosis. Chronic effects noted by the scholars include respiratory illnesses for long-term smokers, drug dependence, poor educational performance, and reduced cognitive functions. This study adds to the information provided by Volkow et al.

Meier, Madeline et al. "Persistent Cannabis Users Show Neuropsychological Decline From Childhood To Midlife". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109.40 (2012): 1-4. Web. The purpose of this research is to look at the neuropsychological influence of marijuana on long-term users of marijuana. The study makes use of a sample group of persons who participated in the Dunedin longitudinal study. The sample size used is made of 1,037 individuals who are monitored till they turned 38 years. The scholars note that people who made use of marijuana for a long time (especially those who started during their teenage years) experienced a neuropsychological decline. As pointed out by Hall et al. (1387) and Volkow et al., recreational marijuana increases the drug's accessibility among teenagers. As such, they are likely to end up using the drug for a long time and may experience neuropsychological declines.

Verweij, Karin J.H. et al. Is the Relationship between Early-Onset Cannabis Use and Educational Attainment Causal or due to Common Liability? Drug and alcohol dependence 133.2 (2013): 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2013.07.034. PMC. Web.In this study, the researchers hold the assumption that even though some studies show a link between cannabis and school dropouts, the drug is not the causal factor. Instead, marijuana alongside other risk factors compounds the probability that teenagers will leave school. Thus, they make use of a longitudinal study on a sample of 3,337 twins who are interviewed via telephone. The researchers find that children who use marijuana from an early age are more likely to drop out of school. The use of a co-twin study shows that marijuana use goes hand in hand with environmental factors to cause truancy. This study is relevant to this essay because marijuana legalization is likely to increase the accessibility of the substance among children as noted in Wang, Roosevelt, and Heard (630-633).

Volkow, Nora D. et al. Adverse Health Effects of Marijuana Use. The New England journal of medicine 370.23 (2014): 22192227. PMC. Web. This scholarly article seeks to identify the various negative health impacts that are brought about by the use of marijuana. The researchers make use of a systematic review and a meta-analysis to combine data from multiple studies that address the adverse effects of cannabis. The researchers point out that early users of marijuana risk addiction, affecting their brain development, dropping out of school, causing accidents, and using cannabis as a gateway drug. While this research draws heavily from other reputable studies, most of the research work used, examined the drugs effects on heavy cannabis users. Furthermore, a good number of people in the sample groups used were in some instances, users of multiple drugs. This makes it hard to pinpoint marijuanas effects in isolation as well as on moderate to light users. However, this study is still useful in showing the potential and actual effects of the substance.

Wang, George Sam, Genie Roosevelt, and Kennon Heard. "Pediatric Marijuana Exposures In A Medical Marijuana State". JAMA Pediatrics 167.7 (2013): 630-633. Web. This investigation seeks to analyze the effects of decriminalizing marijuana for medical use on minors. While this essay looks at cannabiss use in a recreational setting, medical use is usually a small-scale illustration of the effects of marijuana if its use was to be made large scale. The investigators make use of a retrospective cohort study that lasts for seven years (2005-2011) on a pediatric facility in Oregon. The findings of the research show that following the relaxation of marijuana laws in 2009, there was an increase in the number of accidental underage ingestion of marijuana. However, this study is limited since it examines medical marijuana specifically.

 

Work CitedHall, Wayne, and Louisa Degenhardt. "Adverse Health Effects Of Non-Medical Cannabis Use". The Lancet 374.9698 (2009): 1383-1391. Web.

Meier, Madeline et al. "Persistent Cannabis Users Show Neuropsychological Decline From Childhood To Midlife". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109.40 (2012): 1-4. Web

Verweij, Karin J.H. et al. Is the Relationship between Early-Onset Cannabis Use and Educational Attainment Causal or due to Common Liability? Drug and alcohol dependence 133.2 (2013): 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2013.07.034. PMC. Web

Volkow, Nora D. et al. Adverse Health Effects of Marijuana Use. The New England journal of medicine 370.23 (2014): 22192227. PMC. Web.

Wang, George Sam, Genie Roosevelt, and Kennon Heard. "Pediatric Marijuana Exposures In A Medical Marijuana State". JAMA Pediatrics 167.7 (2013): 630-633. Web.

 

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