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U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory: Marijuana Use and the Developing Brain

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Re: U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory: Marijuana Use and the Developing Brain

#201

Post by apl002 »

anon9001 wrote: post #177
apl002 wrote: post #166

Ive smoked for about 15 years now. Started heavy through highschool and college and after college usually just a rip before bedtime. I cant say I've experienced anything negative. No issues focusing or memory problems, or dealing with stress/anxiety. I've quit for months at a time cold turkey with no issues. I'll probably never fully quit but I am doing it less just cause I worry about the effects on my lungs more th…

I've had approximately the same experience. Here's hoping it doesn't cause any long term issues, but I think I would have had a heart attack by now if I didn't smoke to calm myself down and realize I shouldn't take things so seriously. A truly enlightened individual doesn't need any drugs, but I'm not there yet. Maybe in time. For now I think the weed is a net positive.

Yep, agreed on that. Over time I have smoked less and less. Like i said I don't think I'll ever 'quit' but I imagine the time in between seshes will grow longer. All in all cannabis has been very net positive for me

Re: U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory: Marijuana Use and the Developing Brain

#203

Post by mistermann »

umvi wrote: post #67
djsumdog wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> as a result developed schizophrenia I'm sorry about your brother, but I want to point out this is anecdotal. Can cannibals lead to psychosis in people who are prone to it genetically, or are people who start experiencing delusions, bipolar and schizo-effective conditions just likely to escape using alcohol and marijuana? The exact cause/effect conditions here are a big unknown.

Can we stop with the downplaying when it comes to drugs? Drugs should be guilty until proven innocent. Comments like these attempt to make them innocent until proven guilty. History has shown that there are very few "safe" recreational drugs. This attitude is one of the reasons it was so hard for public opinion to change on tobacco usage. "My mom died of cancer from smoking tobacco" "Sorry about your mom, but I want…

> Drugs should be guilty until proven innocent.

For a meme war maybe, but for those of us who decide based on facts, their precise safety is unknown until proven otherwise.

> History has shown that there are very few "safe" recreational drugs.

What history is this, and for what specific definition of the word "safe"?

> This attitude is one of the reasons it was so hard for public opinion to change on tobacco usage.

Perhaps, but pardon me if that doesn't motivate me to hop on board the anti-science train.

Re: U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory: Marijuana Use and the Developing Brain

#204

Post by liability »

DoofusOfDeath wrote: post #173
liability wrote: post #158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Demanding that people give the federal disclaimer every time they discuss the matter is tedious and pointless (since of course you already know it...)

> Demanding that people give the federal disclaimer every time they discuss the matter is tedious and pointless (since of course you already know it...) It seems to me that saying "pot is legal in MA" is precisely as incorrect as saying "pot is illegal in MA". They're both half-truths. I believe there's rhetorical and political power, however, in repeating an untruth without anybody challenging it. HN is intended to…

Being "precisely correct" is tedious and pointless. I was like that in the past and it was a hard habit to kick, but I strongly encourage you to do the same.

Re: U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory: Marijuana Use and the Developing Brain

#205

Post by mudcrab »

bduerst wrote: post #59
bregma wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you really think a publication from a place with a URL 'drugabuse.gov' is going to be a reliable source of unbiased information?

Which of their cited sources are wrong? https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/mari... Specifically, these peer reviewed science articles: * https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22831980 * https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26886046 * https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15866551

All of them are either wrong or irrelevant because none of them factor in weed helping.

Re: U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory: Marijuana Use and the Developing Brain

#206

Post by mistermann »

high_derivative wrote: post #48
40acres wrote: post #3

My brother smoked heavily during his teens and as a result developed schizophrenia / substance induced psychosis. It was generally terrifying to see him unable to complete thoughts and lose his train of thought. He's fine now but I definitely wouldn't be surprised if you told me those years knocked a couple of points off his IQ. I'm for decriminalization and legalization but at the core we need funding for long term…

It totally weirds me out how defensive people are about your anecdote here. Talking to any clinical psychotherapist dealing with young adults, you will hear lots of stories about weed-induced psychosis and anxiety. What I wonder is why it matters to people that it's not as safe as they may believe? Cognitive dissonance? We do lots of unsafe things.

There are certain topics where normally logical people completely abandon it.

Re: U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory: Marijuana Use and the Developing Brain

#207

Post by rewgs »

Medicalidiot wrote: post #192

THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) activates cannabinol receptors in one's brain whenever they smoke cannabis. These receptors are responsible to stimulating hunger (why you get munchies) but they also stimulate something called long term depression, which is the process by which your brain forgets memories. The effects take years to decades for anything significant enough to precipitate. Now, I'm not against smoking cannabi…

> The effects take years to decades for anything significant enough to precipitate.

This sentence is weird to me. Can you rephrase?

Re: U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory: Marijuana Use and the Developing Brain

#208

Post by meiraleal »

ksaj wrote: post #193
meiraleal wrote: post #188

I smoke heavily for 10 years and if I could say something about the cognitive changes, it was for better. I learnt two foreign languages, more programming languages that I can count with one hand and got out of depression by means of self-awareness and meditation after a joint. Weed+Youtube surely is harmful, but so it is only Youtube (with less fun).

You didn't say anything about your age, which would be important given that the article is about the developing brain. It's already pretty understood that the negative impact is significantly less in the adult brain. The majority of people I went to HS with that were potheads are in exactly the types of jobs and whatnot that the Surgeon General suggests is most likely. Of course there are a lot of outliers. Nobody sa…

Fair enough. I started at age of 22 and I'm currently 32. Lots of friends started when they were teenagers and most of them have some issues that can be related to that phase. But also a lot of friends that didn't smoke but watched the same amount of TV have issues that are related to laziness, lack of focus, depression, ADHD, Game addiction.

Re: U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory: Marijuana Use and the Developing Brain

#210

Post by rorykoehler »

bduerst wrote: post #169
weberc2 wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I'm for decriminalization and legalization but at the core we need funding for long term studies to better understand marijuana's effects. This is sort of the inverse of the anti-GMO position: "we should ban GMOs until we understand them". I wonder if there are many legalize-weed / ban-GMO folks, and how they would defend their position?

We do understand GMOs though, after decades of broad testing in both the lab and the field where they were proven safe, with anti-GMO proponents choosing to ignore it. There hasn't been the same degree of controlled scientific testing performed with marijuana as of yet, so calling for it should be welcomed.

Mostly GMOs are used so they can spray more glyphospate. Not sure why anyone thinks this is a good thing. We have had enough discussions on this very forum about insect collapse etc
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