Marijuana: More Harm Than Good

Thomas Askew ‘21

Marijuana leaves taken from shepherdexpress.com.

Over the past several years, a growing number of states have been legalizing the use of recreational marijuana. The majority of the states have already outlawed this drug, but the country is deeply divided on this issue. However, marijuana should not be legalized because of the negative effects it has on health, economy, and driving abilities of those using the drug.

Currently, there are ten states that allow recreational usage of marijuana, these include Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and Washington. The most recent of these states to legalize these drugs was Vermont, allowing recreational use among individuals twenty-one years of age or older.

However, the brain is not fully developed until twenty-five years of age. According to marijuana.procon.org, marijuana usage negatively affects an individual’s brain development. These health effects include short-term memory loss, a decrease in one’s ability to concentrate, a shorter attention span, and a decrease in problem solving skills. It has been proven to make people lose their intelligence.

Additional health effects include schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders. Marijuana use has been linked to many cognitive problems as well as respiratory problems. Because marijuana is one of the only drugs taken by smoking, people using marijuana are at risk of obstructive and inflammatory lung disease, an increased chance of lung cancer, and overall having weaker lungs.

Image of rendered brain scans of marijuana users taken from brainhealth.utdallas.edu.

Marijuana use in this age group leads to hardships when it comes to learning. Whether it be in college or learning important information about the real world, like purchasing a house, people who use recreational marijuana tend to struggle in comprehending these subjects and do not grasp these concepts as well.

This may also be a detriment to teenagers living in states that legalized recreational marijuana. While it may still be illegal for people under the age of twenty-one, marijuana.procon.org says that states that have legalized the usage of recreational marijuana also have a higher percentage of underage users. The average usage of marijuana in teens is higher in legalized states than the national average.

Furthermore, even if marijuana is only permitted to be used by people in a certain age group, it still affect people who are above the age of twenty-one. Recreational marijuana usage has led to an increase of car accidents as a result of drugged driving as well as an increased crime rate. Furthermore, like cigarettes, people around those smoking marijuana are still at risk of second hand smoke.

Statistics of increasing car crashes as a result of cannabis use over four years taken from denverpost.com.

Those who support the legalization of recreational marijuana generally support their belief by saying that if benefits the economy. However, though marijuana does account for millions of dollars worth of income for states that legalized the drug, it still generally accounts for less than one percent of the state’s income. It is typically dwarfed by the alcohol and tobacco sales.

Ncbi.nlm.nih.gov tells us that the sales of legal marijuana may benefit drug cartels. Firstly, more people use marijuana in legal states, therefore, there is more business for drug cartels. People may purchase these drugs from the black market because their prices are lower. Those who sell the drugs legally would have a much higher price than those in the black market.

There are barely any reasonable arguments to support the legalization of recreational marijuana. The economic aspect can be disproved by the insignificant amount it makes compared to tobacco and alcohol, along with the fact that it may support the black market. It also causes many negative health effects that can hurt both the user, and those around them.