Marijuana use is commonplace in Western society, with over 3 million people reporting daily use of the drug in the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, which was conducted in 2003. Though it doesn’t have some of the severe repercussions of other forms of drug abuse, marijuana use can lead to social, psychological and health problems.
Peer Pressure
The image of adolescents imitating their peers in self-destructive ways, such as with drug use, has become a cliché. Unfortunately, the powerful and often harmful effects of peer influence are a reality experienced in every high school across the nation. Educational tactics to inform young people of the risks of drug use show promise in dissuading youth from using marijuana. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reports a much greater resistance to the temptation to smoke marijuana among adolescents who view such behavior as dangerous. Fewer than 2 percent of those who believed that marijuana smoking was a high-risk behavior reported having smoked marijuana in the month prior to the survey, whereas almost 10 percent of those who viewed pot smoking as without risk had smoked it within the prior month.
Desire for Mood Alteration
Those who smoke marijuana often do so in order to induce feelings such as relaxation or euphoria. The desire to alter moods may be a result of daily stressors, depression or plain old boredom. Many people view marijuana use as a relatively benign method of muting the unwanted emotions brought up by dissatisfaction with one’s living situation. Others use marijuana to enhance their enjoyment of social situations, to increase their appreciation of music or to appease their desire to just shut down and play video games for a while.
Medical Uses
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rejects marijuana as a treatment for medical disorders, despite studies revealing it to be therapeutically useful in treating nausea and vomiting induced by chemotherapy. Regardless, some states have legalized the medical use of marijuana, and the FDA has opted not to pursue prosecution of those who use marijuana for medicinal purposes. Medical marijuana use is legal with a doctor’s prescription in 10 states, though this has not stopped the Drug Enforcement Agency from arresting brain cancer patients who use marijuana to ease their pain.
