The use of cannabis has been proven beneficial for a number of different health conditions. Unfortunately, despite the multiple studies on the benefits of cannabis use for conditions such as chronic pain and glaucoma, many people still think that cannabis use is bad for you. This is because the anti-marijuana community has long perpetuated a number of myths in order to demonize its use. It is one of the main reasons it has taken so long for cannabis to become decriminalized nationwide. The following are five of the most common myths that anti-marijuana advocates use to argue against the legalization of cannabis use:
- Cannabis is addictive – First of all, people can become addicted to almost anything. You can become addicted to caffeine or even to fast food. This is known as psychological addiction. In this sense, cannabis is theoretically addictive. However, marijuana does not cause chemical addiction, which occurs when your body can no longer function properly without the use of a certain drug. The use of hard drugs, like heroin or cocaine, can lead to chemical addiction. In fact, cannabis has a much lower rate of addition when compared to alcohol and tobacco.
- Cannabis is a gateway drug – One of the biggest arguments against cannabis use is that it is a gateway to harder, more dangerous drugs. While it is true that many hard drug users start off by using marijuana, this in itself does not prove causation. In fact, there is very little evidence to suggest that using marijuana leads people to abuse hard drugs.
- Cannabis will cause lung cancer – Studies vary when it comes to this subject. There is a small chance that smoking cannabis can increase your risk of lung cancer, but consuming cannabis instead of smoking it eliminates this small risk entirely. Some studies even propose that cannabis use could help reduce the risk of lung cancer.
- Cannabis use leads to crime – Back in the day, anti-cannabis advocates argued that marijuana use would make people violent. However, cannabis generally causes users to become the exact opposite of violent. Any crime related to cannabis is generally a result of its prohibition and not its use.
- Cannabis use leads to low motivation – A common argument against the use of marijuana is that it causes laziness. Although some studies do show that marijuana users are sometimes less motivated than non-marijuana users, these studies did not identify marijuana as the reason for this. Additionally, some of the most successful people in the world have used cannabis, including Bill Gates and Barack Obama.
These are five of the main arguments made against the use and legalization of cannabis – and none of them are true. Cannabis is not only safe to use, but offers unique benefits.Stay tuned to Green Pastures