No evidence exists that anyone has ever died of a marijuana overdose
[61, p. 53 - 54]. Tests performed on mice have shown that the ratio of
cannabinoids (the chemicals in marijuana that make you stoned) necessary
for overdose to the amount necessary for intoxication is 40,000:1 [1]. For
comparison's sake, that ratio for alcohol is generally between 4:1 and
10:1 [61, p. 227-228]. Alcohol overdoses kill about 5,000 yearly [3] but
marijuana overdoses kill no one as far as anyone can tell.

· Brain Damage

Marijuana is psychoactive because it stimulates certain brain
receptors, but it does not produce toxins that kill them [7] (like
alcohol), and it does not wear them out as other drugs may [57]. There is
no evidence that marijuana use is a cause of brain damage. Studies by Dr.
Robert Heath claimed the contrary in experiments on monkeys [4], but
Heath's work has been sharply criticized by the Institute of Medicine and
the National Academy of Sciences on three primary counts:

1. its insufficient sample size (only four monkeys),
   
2. its failure to control experimental bias, and
   
3. its misidentification of normal monkey brain structure as "damaged"
   [5].

A far superior experiment by the National Center for Toxicological
Research (NCTR) involving 64 rhesus monkeys that were exposed to daily or
weekly doses of marijuana smoke for a year found no evidence of structural
or neurochemical changes in the brains of rhesus monkeys [6, 58]. Studies
performed on actual human populations will confirm these results, even for
chronic marijuana users (up to 18 joints per day) after many years of use
[8, 9, 10, 11, 12]. In fact, following the publication of two 1977 JAMA
studies, the American Medical Association (AMA) officially announced its
support for the decriminalization of marijuana.

Contrary to a 1987 television commercial sponsored by the Partnership
for a Drug-Free America (PDFA), marijuana does not "flatten" brain waves
either. In the commercial, a normal human brain wave was compared to what
was supposedly the (much flatter) brain wave of a 14-year-old high on
marijuana. It was actually the brain wave of a coma patient [2]. PDFA lied
about the data, and had to pull the commercial off of the air when
researchers complained to the television networks [62, p. 74].

In reality, marijuana has the effect of slightly increasing alpha-wave
activity. Alpha waves are generally associated with meditative and relaxed
states which are, in turn, often associated with human creativity [13].

· Memory

Marijuana does impair short-term memory, but only during intoxication.
Although the authoritative studies on marijuana use seem to agree that
there is no residual impairment following intoxication [5, 6, 13],
persistent impairment of short-term memory has been noted in chronic
marijuana smokers up to 6 and 12 weeks following abstinence [70].

· Heart Problems

It is accepted in medical circles today that marijuana use causes no
evident long-term cardiovascular problems for normal persons. However,
marijuana-smoking does cause changes in the heart and body's circulation
characteristic of stress, which may complicate preexisting cardiovascular
problems like hypertension, cerebrovascular disease, and coronary
atherosclerosis [5, p. 72]. Marijuana's effects upon blood pressure are
complex and inconsistent [5, p. 66 - 67].

· Hormones

Chronic marijuana use has not been found to alter testosterone or other
sex hormone levels, despite the conclusions of Dr. R.C. Kolodony's 1974
study. Seven similar studies have been performed since then, the most
recent by a Dr. Robert Block at the University of Iowa [14], and none have
reproduced Kolodony's results. In contrast, heavy alcohol use is known to
lower these same testosterone levels [65].

· Reproductive Damage

No trustworthy study has ever shown that marijuana use damages the
reproductive system, or causes chromosome breakage. Dr. Gabriel Nahas
reached the opposite conclusion in his experiments performed in the early
1980s, but did so in part using the in vitro (i.e., in test tubes and
petrii dishes) cells of rhesus monkeys. His rather unjustified claim that
these changes would also occur in human bodies in vivo (in the body) was
criticized by his colleagues and, in 1983, he renounced his own results.

Studies of actual human populations have failed to demonstrate that
marijuana adversely affects the reproductive system [61, 5]. Wu et al.
found in 1988 a correlation between marijuana use and low sperm counts in
human males. But this is misleading because (1) a decrease in sperm count
has not been shown to have a negative effect on fertility, and (2) the
sperm count returned to normal levels after marijuana use had ceased [5].

Claims that marijuana use may impair hormone production, menstrual
cycles, or fertility in females are both unproven and unfounded [43].

· The Immune System

Studies in which lab rats were injected with extremely large quantities
of THC have found that marijuana (in such unrealistically huge quantities)
does have an "immunosuppressive effect" in those lab rats, in that it
temporarily shuts off certain cells in the liver called lymphocytes and
macrophages. These macrophages are useful in fighting off bacterial, not
viral, infections. But this is only for the duration of intoxication [46].
There also exists some evidence that marijuana metabolites stay in the
lungs for up to seven months after smoking has ceased, possibly affecting
the immune system of the lungs (but not by turning the cells off) [47].
This said, doctors and researchers are still not sure that the immune
system is actually negatively affected in realistic situations since there
are no numbers to support the idea [15]. In fact, three studies showed
that THC may have actually stimulated the immune system in the people
studied [16, 17, 18].

· Birth Defects

Unlike alcohol, cocaine, and tobacco, studies show that there exists no
evident link between prenatal use of marijuana and birth defects [5, p.
99] or fetal alcohol syndrome [72] in humans. In fact, marijuana use
during the third trimester has been found to have a positive impact on
birthweight [73]. It is known that Delta-9-THC does enter the placenta
[45], so mothers are advised against consuming large quantities.

· Cancer

Smoking marijuana has the potential to cause both bronchitis and cancer
of the lungs, throat, and neck, but this is generally no different than
inhaling any other burnt carbon-containing matter since they all increase
the number of lesions (and therefore possible infections) in your airways.
There are a couple of studies that claim on the basis of carcinogens that
smoking marijuana is worse for your body than smoking a cigarette [44],
but these are rather simplified. There are actually some very convincing
reasons to believe that smoking cigarettes is relatively more dangerous to
the body than smoking marijuana on more than one count: (1) It is accepted
by a growing number of scientists today that all American cigarettes
contain significant levels of polonium-210 [22], the same sort of
radiation given off by the plutonium of atom bombs (ionizing alpha
radiation). It just so happens that the tobacco plant's roots and leaves
are especially good at absorbing radioactive elements from
uranium-containing phosphate fertilizers that are required by U.S. law,
and from naturally occurring radiation in the soil, air, and water [48].
It is the opinion of C. Everette Koop that this radioactivity, not tar,
accounts for at least 90% of all smoking-related lung cancer [29]. Other
estimates that have been made are, about 50% according to Dr. Joseph R.
DiFranza of the Univ. of Mass. Medical Center [48] and according to Dr.
Edward Martell, a radiochemist with the National Center for Atmospheric
Research, 95% [35]. Dr. R.T. Ravenholt, former director of World Health
Surveys at the Centers for Disease Control, agrees with the risk,
asserting that "Americans are exposed to far more radiation from tobacco
smoke than from any other source" [49]. Supporting the radioactivity
notion is the finding that (a) Relatively high levels of polonium-210 have
been found in both cigarette smoke [59] and the lungs of both smokers and
nonsmokers alike [60]; (b) Smokers of low-tar-and-nicotine cigarettes die
of lung cancer just as much as smokers of other cigarettes [39]; and also,
(c) Even the most potent carcinogen that has been found in cigarettes,
benzopyrene, is only present in quantities sufficient to account for about
1% of the lung cancer cases that occur from smoking[49].

· Why don't you know any of this?

Because the tobacco industry is suppressing the information. (2)
Tobacco smoke is theorized to work as a kind of "magnet" for airborne
radioactive particles such as radon, causing them to deposit in your lungs
instead of on walls, rugs, or draperies [48]. (3) Tobacco, unlike
marijuana, contains nicotine, which may harden arteries and cause many of
the cases of heart disease associated with tobacco use. It also breaks
down into cancer-promoting chemicals called N Nitrosamines when burned,
and perhaps even when it is inside the body [37]. (4) THC is a bronchial
dilator, which means it works like a cough drop by opening up your lungs
and therefore aiding in the clearance of smoke and dirt. Nicotine has the
exact opposite effect. (5) Unlike the chemicals in marijuana, nicotine has
a paralyzing effect on the tiny hairs along the body's air passages. These
hairs normally work to keep foreign matter out of the lungs. This means
that carcinogenic tar from cigarette smoke is relatively much harder to
purge from your lungs than is that from marijuana. And finally, (6)
Marijuana users smoke significantly less than cigarette smokers do because
of both marijuana's psychoactive properties (this is called
"auto-titration") and nicotine's high potential for physical addiction
[21]. It is important to note that the NCTR study found no signs of lung
cancer in its autopsied rhesus monkeys who had smoked marijuana for one
year [6].

Smoking cigarettes and smoking marijuana negatively affect different
areas of the body, and therefore cause different problems. But everything
considered, marijuana-only smokers who average 3 - 4 joints per day show
similar symptoms to cigarette smokers who polish off 20 in a day [74].
Although one well-done study tells us that frequent marijuana smokers have
a 19% greater risk of respiratory diseases than people who smoke nothing
at all [66], it seems that neck and throat cancers are much more likely to
result than lung cancer or emphysema. This is because, unlike tobacco,
marijuana does not penetrate deeply into the lung. In order to minimize
the risk of acquiring neck or throat cancer from marijuana smoke, it is
best to (1) avoid as much as possible cigarette-smoking and heavy drinking
while smoking marijuana, and (2) eat plenty of vegetables (such as
carrots, broccoli, squash, and sprouts) or vitamin supplements of beta
carotene, vitamins A, C and E, and selenium [65]. These are believed to
impede cancer's progress.

In addition, there are actually things that can be done to reduce and
even entirely eliminate the bodily harm that may potentially result from
smoking marijuana. This is possible because all of the principle
psychoactive ingredients of marijuana (THC and the cannabinoids) are
neither mutagenic (gene-mutating) nor carcinogenic (cancer-causing) [65].

Legalizing marijuana would make (better) water bongs and marijuana
foods, drinks, and pills both less expensive and more accessible. Smoking
marijuana through a water-filled bong will cool the smoke and there is
reason to believe that it will filter some of the carcinogens [69, 36].
Eating or drinking marijuana effectively eliminates all negative effects.
In addition, it is conceivable that an aerosol contraption or vaporizer,
commonly called a tilt pipe, could easily be constructed that would
surpass joints in efficiency, match them in onset and control of effects,
and yet would be effectively harmless to the body.

· Fat Cells

One of the more ridiculous myths being circulated is that marijuana
stays in your fat cells and can keep you high for months. Even though they
may have similar names, the psychoactive THC (Delta-9-THC) is different
from the metabolites (for instance, 11-OH-THC and 11-nor) that your body
breaks it down into in that the latter will not get you stoned. It is the
metabolites that stay in your fatty cells and show up on drug tests. Your
body is depleted of Delta-9-THC only hours after ingestion [40, 41].

Other MJ Myths and Realities

· Amotivational Syndrome

Amotivational syndrome is defined as a condition in which a person
loses ambition or motivation to complete tasks that he would normally like
to have completed. Claims made in the 60's that marijuana use resulted in
amotivational syndrome were predominantly founded on stereotypes. But more
recently, the carefully-designed NCTR study has actually confirmed these
suspicions under certain conditions. It found that marijuana use may
consistently produce something akin to amotivational syndrome in
adolescent monkeys. It did not however prove that marijuana makes
adolescents apathetic or depressed. A full recovery to normal motivation
levels was typically observed to occur between two to three months
following cessation of exposure. For unknown reasons, one monkey was
observed to never fully recover. Surprisingly, the willingness to work
appeared to be equally affected in both the daily and weekend rhesus
smokers in the study [6]. Other studies have failed to prove amotivational
syndrome in adults [42], so there is much reason to believe that this
effect only occurs during adolescent use.

· Marijuana Potency

Marijuana is not significantly more potent today than it has been in
the past [23]. It is generally agreed that this myth was the result of bad
data. The researchers making the claims used as their baseline the THC
content of marijuana seized by police in the early 1970's, which had
deteriorated since then because of poor storage conditions [23]. In
reality, it seems that domestic marijuana's average potency probably
doubled in the 70's with the advent of sinsemilla, but has remained more
or less constant since then [65]. Scare tactics claiming that marijuana
potency has increased are rather irrelevant anyways since marijuana users
typically stop smoking when the desired effect is achieved (once again,
"auto-titration"). Contrary to one of DARE's allegations [28], it is
generally agreed that marijuana does not create a tolerance, withdrawal
symptoms, or physical dependence in the user. Lester Grinspoon adds,
"there are many who assert that there is nevertheless drug dependence
because of [marijuana's] capacity to generate psychic dependency. However
it is not at all clear that this type of dependency is essentially any
different from that which a man may develop with respect to his trousers,
his automobile, or his wife" [61, p. 234].

· Driving

Driving in any inebriated state is adding complication to what already
amounts to a constant life-threatening situation. That said, the National
Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) summarized all of its
studies by saying that there was "no indication that marijuana by itself
was a cause of fatal accidents," and that alcohol was by far the "dominant
problem" in drug-related accidents [32]. The Victorian Institute of
Forensic Pathology and Monash University's Department of Forensic Medicine
in Melbourne, Australia have found that drivers who use cannabis are
actually less likely to cause fatal accidents than drug-free drivers, and
are no more likely than other drivers to be killed or seriously injured in
road accidents [33]. One experiment tested marijuana-intoxicated drivers
on both a closed course and on a crowded city street. It found that the
elements of driving most affected were concentration and judgment [52]. An
experiment involving a driving simulator that tested actual driving
ability according to how many mistakes are incurred by sober, drunk, and
high subjects found that marijuana, unlike alcohol, does not significantly
affect driving ability. It was found that these results hold true for even
higher doses (within reason) and inexperienced marijuana users. In fact,
the only significant difference reported by the stoned subjects was an
altered perception of time, which effectively made them drive relatively
slower [50]. A similar study found that marijuana additionally impairs the
driver's ability to attend to peripheral stimuli [71]. One theory
attempting to explain these surprising findings states that marijuana
users, in instances requiring seriousness, are in fact able to willingly
"bring themselves down," such that they are no longer high [51]. Studies
that in the past have shown that marjuana-intoxicated drivers cause
significantly more accidents than sober drivers are typically unreliable
on one or more of the following counts: (1) They use drug tests to
determine whether or not a person is high, and drug tests in use only
indicate use over the past 30 days; (2) Some studies have not corrected
for alcohol use, or do not provide a control group; and (3) In many
studies there were relatively more stoned drivers killed, but it was not
their fault. And when the police "culpability scores" were tallied and
factored in, marijuana was generally not to blame for the accidents. It
must be emphasized however that one study shows that daily marijuana
smokers tend to have a 30% higher risk of injuries than non-users [66]. In
fact, accidents resulting from intoxication are thought to be "the number
one hazard of marijuana use" [67].

· The Gateway Effect

Marijuana use has not been found to act as a gateway drug to the use of
harder drugs. Studies show that when the Dutch partially legalized
marijuana in the 70's, heroin and cocaine use substantially declined,
despite a slight increase in marijuana use [24]. If the stepping stone
theory were true, use should have gone up rather than down. In reality, it
appears that marijuana use tends to substitute for the use of relatively
more dangerous hard drugs like cocaine and heroin, rather than lead to
their use. Thus, oftentimes strict marijuana laws themselves are the most
significant factor involved in moving on to harder drugs like cocaine.
Such is the case in Nevada and Arizona, the states toughest on marijuana
use [65]. A recent study by Columbia University's Center on Addiction and
Substance Abuse attempts to show, like many past studies have, that
marijuana users are more likely to use heroin or cocaine. But what the
study actually does show is that a large number of heroin or cocaine users
have used marijuana, not the reverse. What is not mentioned is that just
as many or even more had probably also drank alcohol, smoked cigarettes,
had sex, or eaten sandwiches prior to their hard drug use. In fact, a
National High School survey tells us that in 1990, 40.7% of all high
school students had tried marijuana or hashish at least once, whereas only
9.4% and 1.3% had ever used cocaine and heroin, respectively [25]. Thus,
at maximum, only 23% of marijuana users go on to use cocaine, and only 3%
go on to use heroin. Thus, the stepping stone theory fails on even
empirical grounds.

· Marijuana and Crime

DARE literature would have you believe that there exists a strong
correlation between marijuana use and juvenile and young adult crime [28].
And a recent study attempts to present a link between marijuana use and
violence by stating that 2/3 of all students who admit to taking a gun to
school at least once had smoked marijuana. In fact, DEA head Thomas
Constantine recently stated in a Washington Times interview that "Many
times people talk about the nonviolent drug offender. That is a rare
species. There is not some sterile drug type not involved in violence who
is contributing some good to the community; that is ridiculous. They are
contributing nothing but evil." But these allegations are unsupported by
research because test results show that changes in personality resulting
from marijuana use, even though they are not relatively significant,
include among other things a lessening of aggressive trends [34]. And
large population studies such as the La Guardia report [10] have found
that, if anything, marijuana use inhibits antisocial activity such as
violence [20]. The drug-inspired violence myth, including a comprehensive
history of its conception, is discussed at great length in Lester
Grinspoon's book, where it is shown to be based largely on a distorted
Persian story that is hundreds of years old [61]. The problem inherent in
drawing conclusions based on correlations such as the 2/3 statistic above
is that causality cannot be inferred from correlation. In other words,
there is no way of determining whether marijuana use contributed in some
way to the existence of certain traits of marijuana users, i.e. bringing a
gun to school, or, as seems entirely more likely, people with such traits
are drawn to marijuana use. One study found that chronic marijuana users
had significantly higher WAIS IQ scores (113.08) than both moderate users
(102.15) and nonusers (103.26) [30]. It is simply impossible to make sense
of such statistics as presented.