There are many very good articles that talk about the effects of cannabis on the Central Nervous System. In this article we will not say it; We will see with data (statistics and studies or research), the incidents of various kinds that the consumption of this substance has.
The latest statistics from the Spanish Observatory of Drugs and Addictions (OEDA), recorded:
- A total of 105 episodes of hospital emergencies related to cannabis use and almost 20% of these people subsequently required hospital admission. Cannabis use was the second cause (drug-related) of these episodes, preceded only, and not by much, by cocaine use (2,170 episodes).
- More than 15,000 admissions to treatment for cannabis use.
- What 94% of all those under the age of 18 who have been treated for illegal drug use in 2015 in our country, have done so for problems associated with cannabis use.
According to the latest survey carried out by the National Plan on Drugs on the use of drugs in secondary education in Spain (ESTUDES 2016/2017), cannabis is the third most used substance among students aged 14 to 18. According to this survey, in 2016 there were about 170,000 students between these ages who started using cannabis.
Taking into account that at these ages the brain is still in full development, it is disturbing to think about the damage that it can cause, especially in young people.
We continue with data, this time from the General Directorate of Traffic (DGT). In recent years the DGT has made several publications highlighting the danger of cannabis use for driving.
Examples are the 2015 publication where it is stated that "After alcohol, cannabis is the drug that appears most frequently among drivers "; or that of December 2017, where they specify, after a week conducting drug detection tests on drivers, that “among the most commonly used drugs are cannabis (569 cases), cocaine (341 cases), amphetamines (81 cases) or methamphetamines (73 cases) ".
Taking into account that it is a disturbing / psychedelic drug, which decreases the capacity of reflexes, usually produces excessive relaxation / drowsiness, hinders the coordination of movements and lengthens the reaction time, among many other effects, the probability of accident increases.
Specifically, according to the Deputy Director of Investigation of the General Directorate of Traffic "someone is three times more likely to have a cannabis accident that without him".
They are objective data, which shows enough that we are not facing a minor problem when we talk about cannabis use.
We will have heard multiple times "I know people who have been smoking cannabis all their lives and nothing has happened to them". Given this statement, first it would be necessary to know if the people who say this have all the information necessary to assert it and also what is the meaning of "nothing" for each person.
But, without going into this debate, which perhaps would not be without controversy, we are simply going to take into account the real data exposed - what does happen with the use of cannabis to a considerable number of people - and now let's reflect on whether it is truly a "Soft drug".
As with alcohol, which is legal and socially normalized, and yet it produces one of the most complex addictions due to its physiological component, cannabis, which on multiple occasions is classified as a “soft drug” as well. can cause real acute, persistent and / or irreversible physical and psychological problems.
Among the irreversible are addiction and psychotic illnesses. In the case of psychosis, there is scientific evidence that supports the connection between the use of cannabis and psychosis in those with a genetic predisposition or other type of vulnerability; there is research that indicates that those people who have a specific variation of the AKT1 gene linked to the use of marijuana are more likely to develop psychosis.
In addition, 9 out of 10 consumers smoke cannabis mixed with tobacco, so the consequences of nicotine and other components should be added..
And we could add to all this the problems related to academic, work, family, economic, legal, etc..
Despite the evidence, it is quite difficult for the general low-risk perception that exists in the population, especially in the youngest, to change to a more realistic concept. This is due to many and diverse reasons, but among them the following stand out:
- That most of the time the consequences of substance use (including cannabis) are hidden, with which there is no realistic vision of the problem. Most of the time only the closest relatives or health professionals know the caliber of the problem.
- What produces a state of relaxation in most of those who consume it, which is associated with an activity with positive connotations.
- The myths about this drug as it comes from a plant, it is natural and does not hurt, and even that it can be even "medicinal or therapeutic".
After all the above, we must not forget that there is also an overwhelming reality regarding this issue, and that is that not all people are affected in the same way or with the same intensity, not all people make the same use (in quantity and / or frequency), nor do all people start using at the same age.
For this reason, the most appropriate thing is to take into account each case individually, as with any situation, but in view of the data and the direct experiences that healthcare professionals encounter on a daily basis, mainly in habitual cannabis users, such as minimum It would be advisable not to magnify, but neither to minimize the consequences that the use of cannabis in any of its forms can cause.
From here and referring to the title of the article, I invite you to use the terms stimulant, depressant or disturbing to refer to the different drugs, and avoid the categories of "hard" or "soft", since any drug is not devoid of consequences, and this terminology can lead to the interpretation of the substance as harmless.
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