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Marijuana may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say

washingtonpost.com

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Re: Marijuana may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say

#141

Post by driverdan »

trose wrote: post #8

I can't help but feel that statistic they're using is a little disingenuous. Yes cannabis has a ridiculously high lethal dose, more than you could ever smoke or consume. You'd basically have to create a concentrate and inject it directly or something. I don't think you should be saying that cannabis is 114 times less deadly than alcohol. There are other contributing factors that could cause harm. There seems to be no…

Did you bother reading the rest of the article?

That line immediately made me feel the same way - then I finished the article saw that the author did a good job at explaining the other risks.

Re: Marijuana may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say

#142

Post by notahacker »

integraton wrote: post #74
Someone1234 wrote: post #23

I've never been a user, but I do support legalisation. The reason I support it even though I myself wouldn't benefit is: - It is at least as safe as tobacco and alcohol. So even if we leave the question of what is safer on the table, I think most people would agree based on available evidence that it isn't LESS safe than those two, and they're legal. - The "war on drugs" has been a disaster. It has actually hurt econ…

> drive under the influence The research about Marijuana's impact on driving is inconclusive, but there are indications that it might have no negative impact (for the most recent example: https://s3.amazonaws.com/s3.documentcloud.org/documents/1667... ) and even that it might reduce risks of crashes. As a result, it's unfortunate that it's apparently socially acceptable to assume without question that marijuana has a…

I couldn't disagree more strongly with the claim that it's "unfortunate" for people to assume, in the absence of strong evidence to the contrary, that drugs associated with impaired cognitive function probably don't mix with activity as potentially lethal as driving.

Especially since the balance of the evidence you've linked to appears to support that assumption.

It's not as if "there is at least some level of marijuana use incompatible with driving" is exactly an extraordinary claim; the burden of proof for establishing parameters for a "safe" level of high whilst in control of a vehicle really ought to sit with proponents of smoking and driving.

Put another way, jumping to the conclusion that driving under the influence of marijuana isn't safe isn't likely to kill people if it's incorrect.

Re: Marijuana may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say

#143

Post by anextio »

benologist wrote: post #106
cnp wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Consuming anything with a sort of deadly, self-destructive intent can lead to death, one way or another. But I'm sorry, if you're going for an LD50 experience with weed, you're not going to get there --ever. Its just not possible unless you've created a medical experiment designed to kill the subject, and to get to that place I'm quite certain additional drugs would be required. Another fruitful Google search: https:…

Innovators and inventors are being empowered by new and changing laws. Someone will invent something more potent than vaporizers until it too is replaced by something more potent. The only reason it hasn't already happened to weed is laws inhibited serious efforts and it came in a naturally consumable form that was good enough.

> more potent than vaporizers

It's not the method, it's the toxicity of the chemical itself. As others have mentioned, regardless of the method of extraction, purification, or intake, this does not change the ridiculous amount that would have to be pumped into the blood in order to kill someone.

Cannabinoids do not affect the brain stem, the primitive part of the brain that controls respiration and the heart. Many other drug overdoses are affected through this avenue. Cannabis does not and cannot.

You would have to adulterate it with another drug, in which case, it is a different discussion.

Re: Marijuana may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say

#144

Post by crystaln »

The graph chosen here, the ratio of a toxic does to a typical dose, is a poor proxy for actual risk. For instance, cocaine has a relatively high risk of causing heart problems at "non-toxic" doses. GHB has a low ratio of deadly to recreational (though not so low that it's unmanageable,) yet is one of the safest recreational drugs.

This is similar to the British health leader's announcement that MDMA was safer than alcohol, entirely based on how much likely someone was to die, as opposed to other potential negative effects like neurotoxicity.

I'm a support of full drug legalization, and agree that most drugs are far less harmful when taken properly than alcohol. It would be great to see less obtuse statistical analysis of risk.

Re: Marijuana may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say

#145

Post by benologist »

anextio wrote: post #143
benologist wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Innovators and inventors are being empowered by new and changing laws. Someone will invent something more potent than vaporizers until it too is replaced by something more potent. The only reason it hasn't already happened to weed is laws inhibited serious efforts and it came in a naturally consumable form that was good enough.

> more potent than vaporizers It's not the method, it's the toxicity of the chemical itself. As others have mentioned, regardless of the method of extraction, purification, or intake, this does not change the ridiculous amount that would have to be pumped into the blood in order to kill someone. Cannabinoids do not affect the brain stem, the primitive part of the brain that controls respiration and the heart. Many ot…

> it is a different discussion.

This isn't a discussion about how far "pure weed" can get you, it's about what's going to happen now that the laws don't deter people from applying technology and science to weed, and whether a 'fatal dose' is just a limitation of the literally stone-age techniques we currently use to consume stone-age quantities of weed in its basic plant form.

Re: Marijuana may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say

#146

Post by gnaritas »

Someone1234 wrote: post #23

I've never been a user, but I do support legalisation. The reason I support it even though I myself wouldn't benefit is: - It is at least as safe as tobacco and alcohol. So even if we leave the question of what is safer on the table, I think most people would agree based on available evidence that it isn't LESS safe than those two, and they're legal. - The "war on drugs" has been a disaster. It has actually hurt econ…

Stoners driver safer than most sober people, your opinion is ill informed and based on alcohol, which is a vastly different drug.

Re: Marijuana may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say

#147

Post by Raphmedia »

anigbrowl wrote: post #123
spacemanmatt wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do we really know that? I mean, it stands to reason that combustion produces carcinogens, but cannabis is not tobacco. I think this is one of the basic assertions that must be validated by quantitative analysis.

Cannabis is thought to have an anti-carcinogenic effect, which is neat, but you'd still be at risk for emphysema and other kinds of lung diseases just from the physical impact of the smoke. Edible cannabis seems a lot safer in that respect but of course it's harder to gauge the dose, it's longer-lasting due to the different metabolic pathway, and it doesn't have the instant gratification of smoking. On the up side yo…

Vaporization.

Re: Marijuana may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say

#148

Post by filoeleven »

Someone1234 wrote: post #23

I've never been a user, but I do support legalisation. The reason I support it even though I myself wouldn't benefit is: - It is at least as safe as tobacco and alcohol. So even if we leave the question of what is safer on the table, I think most people would agree based on available evidence that it isn't LESS safe than those two, and they're legal. - The "war on drugs" has been a disaster. It has actually hurt econ…

> Unfortunately there isn't a very reliable test to see if someone is under the influence of anything other than alcohol.

I heard a lot of noise almost a decade ago about impairment testing. The idea is not to test for a specific drug, or a specific amount of a drug, but rather to test the ability of the person to react to situations. There isn't a lot of material out there about it, but it was highly praised at the time (in the info I came across) because it gets closer to the question that we really want to be answered: does this person currently have the ability to safely perform the task at hand? It removes the stigma of particular substances from the equation and also gives you the ability to test someone who is "drug-free" but also stayed up all night and may not be as able a driver (or machinist, or nurse) as usual.

That was all a while ago, and I have yet to hear more or read any in-depth studies about the practice. Does anyone know if new research has been done?

Re: Marijuana may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say

#149

Post by mackwic »

gnaritas wrote: post #146
Someone1234 wrote: post #23

I've never been a user, but I do support legalisation. The reason I support it even though I myself wouldn't benefit is: - It is at least as safe as tobacco and alcohol. So even if we leave the question of what is safer on the table, I think most people would agree based on available evidence that it isn't LESS safe than those two, and they're legal. - The "war on drugs" has been a disaster. It has actually hurt econ…

Stoners driver safer than most sober people, your opinion is ill informed and based on alcohol, which is a vastly different drug.

Do you have source to backup this claim ? I found it quite doubtful.

Re: Marijuana may be even safer than previously thought, researchers say

#150

Post by innguest »

Zelphyr wrote: post #43
guelo wrote: post #13

As a programmer I'm very protective of my higher level brain functions. Marijuana's effects on short term memory are especially concerning to me. Do any of you long term smokers feels like it has affected your programming skills for the worse or better?

One of the most brilliant programmers I know is a regular smoker and he has an amazing short-term memory. Though now I have to wonder what his memory would be like if he didn't smoke?

Same here, I know someone very smart and prolific and I've sat next to him and watched him code page after page smoking bowl after bowl for almost a year. That's what makes me think it's all about the person and nothing to do with the substance.
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