Effects of Teen Marijuana Use Essay

There has been an extensive amount of research done on risk factors and marijuana use. Among adolescents the vast majority of the research has identified five major risk factors associated with adolescent marijuana use, family relations (parent-child attachment), peer associations, substance abuse programs, gender, and race. Some researchers have found that the family is the best predictor of adolescent marijuana use, while others claim that peer associations are predictors of adolescent marijuana use. Others believe that substance abuse programs are the key to deterring adolescent drug use. The final groups of researchers believe gender and race are the underlining predictors. The following studies will give a quick overview of the prior research on risk factors and adolescent marijuana use.

This statistic showing that the used of marihuana is increase every years. This affect the teenager in school, because affect the memory, cannot concentrate, this will end on poor performing, dropping out without graduation. Most of the teenager that used marijuana their parent not has idea what going with their young. Also this will be affecting their relation with their families, some come aggressive or depress. According to National Institute of Drug Abuse, students who smoke marijuana tend to get lower grades and are more likely to drop out of high school. In United State the teenager start work since of age fifteen in some place, but several studies have linked workers' marijuana smoking with increased absences, tardiness, accidents, and job turnover. ("What is marijuana? | National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)", 2012).

Research has found that teenagers who used cigarettes were twelve times more likely to graduate to marijuana use. A similar study conducted by Denise Kandel (1992) revealed that use of marijuana affects dopamine levels in the brain in a similar way to nicotine. Cigarette smoking facilitates consumption of other substances. Smoking cigarettes initiate juveniles into the sensation of drug inhalation, which desensitizes them from the feeling of smoke clouding their lungs. This paper finds that marijuana pervades the life of a juvenile tobacco smoker. Teenagers who smoke cigarettes

Smoking of marijuana can cause the person to become addicted to cocaine, heroin, and other drugs. Heavy or daily use effects the parts that control memory, attention, and learning (Facts for Teens, 13). When teens are 12 and 13 they are more exposed to drugs and most likely don’t listen to their parents (Age in Stem., 1). Some other psychological side effects would be paranoia, anxiety, fatigue, Euphoria, and mood swings (Fact Sheet, 1). Studies have shown that when a person uses marijuana it causes the heart to beat faster and work harder (Fact Sheet, 2). When people have smoked large measures of marijuana for years, the drugs takes its charge on mental functions (Facts for Teens, 13).

People might think smoking marijuana is cool. They might try it without knowing what it is or what affects is has on you. Once someone smokes it for the first time, they might keep doing it again and again and they could get hooked on it for life. People who use marijuana usually never use any other type of illegal drugs, but more than seven thousand five hundred people get arrested for using marijuana every year. There is a wide variety of marijuana, but they are all based off of two marijuana plants, Indica and Sativa. Marijuana is very popular in America, and all over the world. Marijuana affects the body, it can be used as medicine, and marijuana can be addictive.

Marijuana is a popular and universal drug. It is easily accessible to most people and is the number one illicit drug used in North America. Although the availability and knowledge of this drug is fairly equal for all people in North America, marijuana tends to be more prevalent in teenagers and young adults. Maisto, Galizio, and Conners (2004) reported that "use of marijuana [in young people] was 8.0% among those aged 12-17; 16% among those aged 18-25," as compared to "6.8% among those aged 26-34; and 2.4% among those 35 and older." People of all ages, races, and religions use marijuana and have their own reasons to use it. Young people first try marijuana because of some common reasons. Some teenagers feel pressured by their peers to

In addition to increase public health problems, legalizing marijuana will lead to increase use of the drug among youngsters. Despite the regulatory approaches, legalizing marijuana has the inevitable effect of increasing the availability and consumption of the drug. Under the current prohibitions, the rate of consumption of marijuana among teenagers is already high; however, the rate of use would greatly increase if the drug was legitimately available to the population. For instance, despite the prohibitions against distribution of alcohol to teenagers, many youngsters who are under the legal age drink alcohol today. Similarly, high percentages of the young population are currently smokers even though the law prohibit them from buying cigarettes. Therefore, it is expected that the usage of marijuana among teenagers would increase if marijuana was legalized. Notably, the marijuana use will impair the development process of teenagers, which will negatively affect their health in later life. Thus, the increased use of marijuana among teenagers is a great concern. It will contribute to great dangers on the health of the youths.

Marijuana is a 'gateway drug'-The addiction rate for marijuana is lower than that of alcohol, and there is little scientific evidence that it acts as a trigger for harder drugs. While teen marijuana use is not to be encouraged, the real "gateway drug" risk might be from abusing prescription opioids and stimulants, like OxyContin, Vicodin and Adderall, or with inhalant drug use. These have strong addictive properties and more accessible to teens.

Marijuana is one of the most commonly used drugs in the Nation and the world. In an article by Gray (2007) he states that “42% of high school seniors have tried marijuana, 18% have used it in the past 30 days, and 5% use it daily. Among adolescents aged 12 to 17, 3.6% met criteria for cannabis use disorder (abuse or dependence) and 2% met criteria for cannabis dependence”. Gray (2007) also explains how easily adolescents say it is to obtain marijuana these days. The article also states that there is evidence to prove that marijuana use may lead to “hard” drug use, academic failure, and more. With those who use marijuana chronically it may lead to impairing of the immune

We all know that marijuana is an addictive substance. Legalizing cannabis use is an easy way for people to use drugs. Using marijuana impacts teenagers’ learning outcomes, ability to work as well as driving, increases car accidents. The consequence of using stimulants at a young age leads to conflicts

It seems every decade marijuana studies show that it has no side effects on users, in turn it become more available like when some states in America had legalized it. Dr Kevin M. Gray believes that the only side effect of smoking weed is the physical addictions it causes, he believes that over 51% of all teens have used weed at least once and the biggest problem we are facing with this rapidly growing drug use is only addiction. Dr Marshall M. Gay believes that the health effects of weed isn’t that much as smoking cigarettes and doesn’t see it a threat to people’s health. “More than half (51%) of adolescents reported that marijuana is fairly or very easy to obtain.2 this ease of availability may have contributed to a recently reported "reverse gateway" from cigarettes use to marijuana”. The more ignored belief is that marijuana can lead to a variety of developmental, mental and physical side effects. The effects of smoking weed can extend to those of smoking cigarettes “studies show regular marijuana use can lead to many of the same

Marijuana is considered in popular culture to be a widely accepted mainstream recreational illegal drug used in the United States; its use comes with severe adverse side effects that are often overlooked. Long-Term use of marijuana 'sis shown to have negative effects on physical, mental, and environmental health. Studies have shown that in the United States, up to 20% of daily marijuana users become dependent (Marijuana and Lung Health) showing a physical or emotional need for the drug. Marijuana use has the potential to affect every aspect of a person 's physical and mental wellbeing negatively. Its use also comes with potentially life-altering risks to one 's future including an individual’s likelihood of obtaining a degree, impacting their future earning potential and decreasing their overall reported life satisfaction. Once dependent on marijuana, people stop caring about their schooling. Long-term use of smoking marijuana can result in the inability to learn, retain information and think critically.

Marijuana being illegal gives a chance for organized crime to occur in disadvantaged neighborhoods and the social process of being a minority and poverty contributes to the use of marijuana among the youth. For individuals there are certain explanations as to why they used marijuana, anxiety, school attachment violent victimization, childhood ADHD. Within families, if parents used substance youth’s probability of usage increases, and less strict vigilance of parents link to marijuana use, similar to overprotective parents leads to use. Similar to parents influence, peer influence is also a major factor to usage, and all these are specific to youth. Referring back to the social process, society oppresses those in poverty and contributes to two working parents (possibly one with two or more jobs) trying to live

Even though it is illegal if the drug abusers have not been caught they will continue to use the drug and use others. Many adolescences experiment with marijuana due to curiosity and peer pressure studies have shown that the use of marijuana at a young age causes the adolescences to want to try more dangerous narcotics such as cocaine and heroin. An article titled “Evidence That Marijuana Is a Gateway to other Illicit Drug Use” by Joseph Gfoerer, Li-Tzy Wu, and Michael Penne states that, “the highest prevalence of use of heroin, cocaine, and psychotherapeutics in the lifetime was noted among those who initiated marijuana before they were 15 years old. With many young people trying strong narcotics illegally it is no surprise that other young people will also become more apt to try these heavier drugs. The article, “Marijuana is a Dangerous Drug for Teens” by Joseph Calfifano discuses why marijuana is so dangerous for teens and how the gateway effect plays part in this problem. The article states that marijuana use is a “signal of trouble”, the troubles include lack of growth, focus, and motor skills. He also brings up the gateway effect in the article the statistics he uses include, “Twelve to seventeen year olds who smoke marijuana are eighty five times more likely to use cocaine than those who would not.” These statists are very strong in

This research is designed to answer the following question: Does the quality of a person’s relationships with their parents and with their peers influence the extent to which that person engages in marijuana use? “Data for this study come from the [seventh wave of the] National Youth Survey (NYS). The NYS is a nationally representative, longitudinal survey of 1,725 U.S. youth between the ages of 11 and 17 at the time of the first interview in early 1977. Respondents were interviewed annually through 1981 (Waves 1-5) and then again in 1984 (Wave 6) and 1987 (Wave 7). By the last wave of interviews, respondents were between the ages of 21 and 27 years” (King & South, 2011, p. 107).