Month: July 2020

Cannabis edibles compliment marijuana smoking. They are therefore an alternative way for those who may not prefer to inhale smoke from marijuana smoking. Despite the fact that it is considered illicit in most countries to consume marijuana or cannabis edibles, the consumption is increasingly evident across the globe. The trade in these products has increased over a period of time.

Most users of marijuana or cannabis edibles assert that marijuana is a medicinal plant. Apart from being a stimulant plant, they defend the marijuana usage by the assertion that it cures cancer and other dreadful diseases.

It has also been noticed that in terms of gender and age, young boys are on the lead in the marijuana consumption. They are adversely being hit by the negative effects of peer pressure hence exposing their lives to drug abuse threats.

Cannabis edibles are simply food products with the marijuana extract referred to as Tetrahydrocannibol  (THC). The extract is obtained from marijuana plants and is induced into food products during food processing. The commonly known cannabis edibles include beverages, lozenges, candies, chocolates, gummies and many more. These food products are either made at home for domestic use or manufactured by industries for commercial purposes. Below are the challenges of cannabis edibles to users;

1. Delayed onset of effects

It takes a couple of hours for one to determine the influence of cannabis edibles on his or her mind. Unlike marijuana smoking where the effects are noticed immediately once someone starts smoking, this is very opposite for cannabis edibles. Consequently, most people take excess THC content in this food products . Excess THC leads to acute marijuana intoxication.

2. Immeasurable THC potent

It is very unfortunate that there is no equipment designed to measure THC amounts in marijuana extracts to be applied in these food products. Consequently, THC content in these products is very unknown as some contain excess THC while others have less THC.

Adverse Health Implications of Cannabis Edibles

Cannabis edibles were designed mainly to counter the harmful effects of marijuana. Contrary to this, it has been established that they are even worser compared to marijuana smoking. The following are some of adverse effects of these products;

Heart problems

Heart problems are also known as cardiovascular diseases. They are diseases affecting the heart. They include coronary artery, heart attacks, chest pains, stroke and many more.

Domestic violence

Most violence related cases result from drug abuse. The products once taken alter the normal functioning of one’s brains making him or her to behave abnormally. Violence causes serious quarrels and to some extent fighting leading to serious injuries and deaths.

Hallucinations

Hallucination is a serious mental condition where a person sees unreal images and hears unreal voices. A person who is hallucinating is out of  senses. In case he or she is passing by the road or the river side, accident is likely  to occur as he can drown in the river or being knocked down by a motor vehicle. Therefore hallucination is a serious mental condition that exposes one’s live to death.

As most people are now exposed to drug usage, it is very vital for them to know the underlying health risks associated with consuming these drugs. Since the young generation is exposed to drugs due to ignorance and the influence of peer pressure, self awareness programs should be aired over social media platforms for this vital information to be shared across the the globe.

Generally, it is well known that illegal drugs such as Cannabis have certain long term and short term effects which can lead to illness, disability, or death. Being the cause of various diseases, it is important to understand how much disability a certain illness causes. This is also referred to as burden of disease. This then led to the launching of the World Health Organization which under it contained the World Mental Health. Therefore, the World Mental Health Surveys have researched lifetime use of this substance in various countries pinpointing on young adults. Their main objective is to examine the age of onset of use and how a person’s social and economic status is affected.

What did the researchers do obtain information?

Data on the drug use was obtained in seventeen countries. The countries were determined by the presence of mergers and on funding for the survey. Lay interviewers who are experienced performed face to face interviews except in one country which it was practiced by telephone communication; using a standardized structured diagnostic interview for psychiatric conditions. Participants were questioned on the usage of the drug and the age they initialized using it. Interviewers recorded the ages, sex, marital status, employment and household income of each participant. From the results, some countries had higher levels of Cannabis compared to others. The worldwide distribution of the drug usage was then unevenly distributed. Moreover, males were the more victims of the drug use compared to females. Younger adults also were more likely to have used the drug than older adults. Cannabis use was not related to the drug policy; since countries with more regulatory policies did not have lower levels of the drug use than those with more liberal policies.

The findings were of great use to the government and health organizations since they contributed to the understanding of the global effects of Cannabis. The research presented comprehensive and important data on the patterns of drug use from national samples of all regions. However, the survey was not done in all countries. Within the countries surveyed, there were also different rates of participation; hence it was unclear whether people accurately reported their drug use when interviewed.

In conclusion, knowing the adult lifetime Cannabis use by country leads to the development of healthier nations by directing policies against the drug usage. Furthermore, the World Health Organization has played a great role in supporting the countries affected to prevent and reduce the problems caused by Cannabis. It has done this by their regulatory control and advice to the United Nations.  Cannabis has been classified as the most commonly used illicit drug. However, it has very limited benefits of usage.