Cannabis Sativa Essay Research Paper Cannabis Sativa

Cannabis Sativa Essay, Research Paper

Cannabis Sativa

Marijuana is available anywhere in the world, as the black market is widespread and thriving very well. It has even started to be widespread in local malls where all kinds of hemp (marijuana) products for everyday use are becoming available. Marijuana goes under many names like Pot, Grass, Hash, Reefer, MaryJane, Weed and there are also names that depict the potency and place of origin like Bungo the Egyptian weed, Ganja the Jamaican weed, and Beu the French weed.

Hemp products cover a huge range of uses from paper, cloth, beauty products to dog biscuits. The hemp or marijuana (marijuana and hemp are the same plant Cannabis Sativa, marijuana is the type grown for use as drug, while hemp is very low in THC and is not considered a drug.) Plant also produces 40% more oxygen than any other plant. Marijuana is the most widespread drug in the world, if only hemp could be the most widespread crop in the world.

Marijuana is a plant, with the botanical name of Cannabis Sativa. Marijuana is a weed that grows wild and is cultivated in many parts of the world. Containing 419 chemicals, this plant has the ability to intoxicate its users, primarily because of the psychoactive mind altering ingredients called Delta – 9 – Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC. It is the THC content found at various concentration in different parts of the plant, which determines the potency.

The THC content is controlled by plant strain, climate, soil conditions, and harvesting, in 1975, the average confiscated sample of marijuana contained 0.4 percent of THC, in 1979 the content was about 4 percent and in the 80’s about 7 percent, “today the THC content goes up to about 40 percent” (Woodard 42). This high potency marijuana is grown using hydroponics. Hydroponics is a process that exposes the plant to extreme heat and light (1000 watt projectors with aluminum foil all around the plant), sparse water (practically forcing the roots to break out below the pot) sometimes a constant small flame creating more CO2 in order for the plant to work even harder to produce more oxygen through photosynthesis.

Grass (dried marijuana off the stem) is smoked, cooked with a variety of foods from cakes to spaghetti and drunk in many different types of beverages. Most marijuana users roll it in a cigarette called, Joint, doobie, spliff, and a few other nicknames. It can also be smoked in all kinds of pipes and water pipes. These days the open and legal sale of all kinds of marijuana paraphernalia such as bongs, rolling machines, pipes, T-shirts, stickers and a lot more, all flashing the famous 5 leaf symbol of marijuana.

“Hashish or Hash, is nothing more than the essence of the marijuana plant extracted and hardened into a block” (Powell 37), Hash is usually smoked in a pipe, although there are many recipes that imply it as a cooking ingredient. Some people say it has a different affect than weed but this is not true, “with the exception being that hash is a good deal stronger” (Powell 38). Hash is a lot more expensive than grass. It can be smoked either in a pipe or by mixing it with tobacco in a cigarette, traditionally, Hashish has been smoked in a hookah or water pipe (Stewertka 16). Middle eastern countries used a hookah most of the time because more than one person could smoke at the same time. It has also been used in the kitchen as far back as the early civilization around the Ganges River. Today, thousands of people travel to Amsterdam to sample or feast on all kinds of grass or hash food.

When people smoke moderate amounts of marijuana, it is reported that feelings of euphoria and relaxation are commonly experienced. Users experience an increase in heart and pulse rate, reddening of the eyes, dryness of the mouth, a mild decrease in body temperature , and on occasion a sudden appetite (The Munchies). There is no such thing as a marijuana overdose, high doses may result in image distortions, extreme paranoia, extreme anxiety, loss of concentration, slower movements and reflexes as well as time distortions.

The drug also impairs short term memory which makes it as dangerous as alcohol as far as motor skills are concerned. The effect of the drug lasts from 2-4 hours, once the high is gone, a person feels drowsy, tired and unmotivated, headaches have also been reported.

Long term users of marijuana risk cancer and other smoking diseases because marijuana smoke has a high tar content which damages the lungs when smoked, “one marijuana cigarette has 50% more tar than an equal weight tobacco cigarette” (Weis 22). Cannabis, when smoked, has 4 times as much cancer causing agents than cigarettes. Sometimes it also causes a sore throat, rhinitis, and bronchitis, Marijuana can also interfere with reproduction by altering and affecting fertility, damaging the chromosome of the germ cells of the male or female. It can also directly affect fetal growth and development.

THC and other compounds inhibit DNA and RNA and inhibits cell division, cannabis can also interfere with the immune system. In short, long term use may produce lung damage, impair reproductive functions cause long-lasting disturbances of behavior and brain function and lower resistance to infection. Long-term use of marijuana also affects long-term memory as well as short-term memory. Yet at the same time, marijuana could be used as a