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| |    Marijuana Facts and FAQs by Robert Needlman, M.D., F.A.A.P. reviewed by Laura Jana, M.D., F.A.A.P. Most of the information in this article comes from Marijuana: Facts Parents Need to Know, a brochure published in 1998 by the National Institute of Drug Abuse, or NIDA. (You can also view the full brochure on the institute's website.) A weed by any other name... Marijuana, the most commonly used illegal drug in the U.S., has spawned a huge number of nicknames. Some of these are familiar to many of us from the '60s and '70s (pot, herb, grass, weed, Mary Jane, reefer). Others are more recent: Aunt Mary, skunk, boom, gangster, kif, ganja, Texas tea, Maui wowie, and Chronic are slang for different types of marijuana. Basic ingredients Marijuana is simply dried, shredded leaves, stems, and seeds from the hemp plant (in Latin, Cannabis sativa). The active ingredient in marijuana is TCH (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol). Sensemilla, made from just the buds and flowers of the plant, contains about twice the THC as regular marijuana. Hashish ("hash") has about the same amount of THC as sensemilla, while hash oil (refined from hashish) may have more than 10 times the THC of regular marijuana. Packaging is everything Marijuana comes loose or wrapped in cigarette paper (joints). A "blunt" is a cigar in which the tobacco has been replaced with marijuana. A "B-40" is a blunt taken along with a 40-ounce can of malt liquor--a dangerous combination, since both alcohol and THC impair judgment and coordination. Other marijuana-based products include "primos" or "woolies" (marijuana mixed with crack cocaine), and "happy sticks" (marijuana mixed with PCP). Adolescents who experiment with these cleverly named products may get more than they bargained for, that is, not just the marijuana, which is relatively safe, but also the much more dangerous cocaine, PCP, and possibly other drugs as well. Can you tell if someone is high? Perhaps. With acute intoxication, a person may giggle a lot, as though everything were terrifically amusing, or act uncharacteristically silly. He may have trouble remembering things he just heard (a real problem in school!). He may feel dizzy or have difficulty walking straight. Marijuana can cause blood vessels in the eyes to widen, making the eyes bloodshot. On the other hand, these signs might be absent. People can develop a tolerance for marijuana, especially with chronic use, so that it no longer affects them as strongly as it did before. How can I tell if my child is using marijuana? The best way (as with other drugs and alcohol) is to talk openly with your teen. Changes in mood, dropping grades, and withdrawal from friends and favorite activities are all signs of emotional distress that could be due to drug use or to other problems such as depression (see Symptoms of Drug Abuse). If your child starts using incense, air fresheners, or eye drops, those might be attempts to cover up signs of marijuana use. Drug paraphernalia, such as pipes and cigarette papers, are a pretty clear tip-off. My sense is, if your child leaves these things lying around, he is asking for you to talk with him about his drug use. What about drug testing? Urine testing can usually detect marijuana use within the last few days, because traces of the THC remain in the body that long. With heavy, chronic use, traces can remain in the body for weeks. For more on drug testing, see the article When Your Older Adolescent May be Using Drugs. Do people become dependent on marijuana? Most people who use marijuana infrequently probably will not become dependent. Heavy users can develop dependence in that they feel awful when the effects of the drug wear off. They may feel anxious, restless, and shaky. To avoid these withdrawal symptoms, they spend a great deal of time and energy finding their next "hit" or worrying about finding it--that is, they become addicted. Marijuana is illegal. How do young people get it? No community is marijuana-free. In the most recent survey, 47 percent of 8th-graders felt it would be "easy or fairly easy" to get marijuana, as did nearly 78 percent of 10th-graders. More information: Talk about:
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