Marijuana Myths Debunked
It’s no secret that the United States has been fighting a drug epidemic for quite some time. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, since 1999, more than 760,000 Americans have died from a drug overdose. In 2018, an estimated 9.9 million people misused prescription pain relievers, 808,000 people used heroin, and 67,367 people died from a drug overdose two-thirds of which involved an opioid. Virginia has not been immune from this epidemic. Indeed, 1,484 people died from drug overdoses in the Commonwealth in 2018.
Given these astonishing statistics, I think we must all ask ourselves, why in the world did Virginia’s General Assembly vote overwhelmingly to allow the manufacture and sale of marijuana?
That’s right, earlier this month, the General Assembly voted to legalize the possession of one ounce of marijuana or less for those 21 years of age and older. This law could go into effect as early as this summer. Additionally, the new legislation stipulates that July 1, 2021 will mark the start of the process of expunging some previous misdemeanor marijuana-related offenses and retail sales for marijuana will begin in 2024 and be overseen by a newly created regulatory entity.
To my dismay, it turns out that there are some who actually believe that the answer to the drug epidemic in the United States is to provide people with more access to mind altering, addictive substances. If that sounds completely ridiculous, that’s because it is. There are a bunch of “reasons” why some think legalizing marijuana is the panacea to the drug epidemic, but as you will see below, these are just myths being hocked by the left to try and convince us that marijuana is a harmless drug with a lot of “really good” benefits.
Myth #1: Increased access to marijuana through legalization policies could help combat the opioid crisis.
Reality: Studies using strong scientific methods actually show that marijuana use increases the propensity for starting to misuse prescription opioids rather than lowering it. Further, those with an addiction to prescription opioids often have a history of using other drugs including marijuana. The belief that legalizing marijuana will help combat the opioid crisis was never directly tested; these ideas came from ecological studies comparing prescribing rates and overdose rates at a state level. With ecological studies, however, there is no way to attribute prescribing patterns and overdoses to the laws and not to other factors. The most recent replication of these earlier ecological studies did not find any evidence that marijuana laws were associated with a decrease in opioid overdose mortality, and some analyses from this study suggest that comprehensive medical marijuana laws are associated with an increase in overdose deaths.
Myth #2: Legalizing marijuana for medical purposes will reduce opioid overdose deaths.
Reality: A study conducted by Stanford University’s School of Medicine analyzed the period from 1999 – 2017 and found that the legalization of, and broader access to medical marijuana, has not reduced opioid overdose death rates. In fact, this study showed no protective effect whatsoever of medical marijuana. Furthermore, states that legalized medical marijuana actually experienced a 22.7% increase in opioid overdose deaths.
Myth #3: Marijuana can be used to treat people who suffer from depression.
Reality: According to a variety of studies, there’s little evidence to support the use of cannabinoids to treat depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and psychosis. In fact, data shows that cannabis use can actually increase depression, anxiety, and psychotic symptoms. Furthermore, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) does not endorse cannabis for medical use, and in early 2019, the APA noted that there is no current scientific evidence to suggest cannabis is in any way beneficial for the treatment of any psychiatric disorder. The APA further noted that current evidence supports, at a minimum, a strong association of cannabis use with the onset of psychiatric disorders, and adolescents are particularly vulnerable due to harmful effects of cannabis on neurological development.
According to a report from Colorado’s Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, between 2014 and 2017, the number of suicides involving marijuana increased 250% among those between the ages of 10-19 years and 22% among those 20 years of age and older. A similar trend can also be seen in other states, and according to Dr. Paula D. Riggs, director of the University of Colorado’s division of addiction science, prevention, and treatment, evolving research shows a relationship between suicidality and the use of marijuana, especially the high-potency products, such as waxes, “dabs,” and oils, that are available in legalized markets.
According to Riggs, today’s marijuana is vastly different from the marijuana from the 1960’s. Specifically, the average marijuana joint in the 1960’s contained about 3% THC (the active ingredient in marijuana), but today, the average joint contains between 13%-23% THC. Other products, such as dabs, waxes, and butane hash oils, contain upward of 70%-95% THC, and they now represent 25% of the market share. This is very disconcerting because these products are highly potent, which means they provide a greater potential for abuse and addiction.
Myth #4: Using marijuana will help people to better manage their pain.
Reality: Using marijuana to manage pain does not appear to be related to decreases in pain. A recent survey of 450 opioid users with chronic pain showed no difference in pain intensity between the group who also reported using cannabis/marijuana and the opioid use-only group. Additionally, the opioids plus cannabis/marijuana group showed significantly higher scores on measures of depression and anxiety and had greater use of other substances such as tobacco, alcohol, and cocaine. These findings are consistent with results from the larger Pain and Opioids in Treatment (POINT) study, which was published in the July 2018 edition of The Lancet. POINT results showed no evidence of a progressive relationship between cannabis/marijuana use and pain severity or pain interference, and no evidence that cannabis/marijuana use reduced prescribed opioid use or increased opioid discontinuation.
Myth #5: Legalizing marijuana can help individuals to stop abusing opioids.
Reality: A study in New York found that adults with substance abuse problems are more likely to misuse opioids on days when they use cannabis/marijuana. In fact, participants in the study were almost twice as likely to use non-medical opioids on days when they used cannabis/marijuana. This is a very important observation because it suggests that, among people with substance use disorders, cannabis/marijuana is often used as a complement to opioids instead of as a substitute, which lies in direct contrast to the advertisements from the cannabis/marijuana industry who advocate that their products be used to address the opioid overdose crisis.
Myth #6: Marijuana is safe – it’s natural – and nobody can overdose on marijuana.
Reality: After Massachusetts legalized marijuana in 2012, cannabis-related calls to poison control center involving children and teens DOUBLED – and, according to researchers, edible marijuana products are of particular concern.
Researchers reviewed data from the Regional Center for Poison Control and Prevention (RPC) at Boston’s Children’s Hospital from 2009 – 2016, four years before and four years after medical marijuana was legalized in Massachusetts. What they found was: RPC calls related to cannabis exposure in children and teens jumped 140% during the study period with 81.7% of the calls involving teenagers 15-19 years of age. Around 25% of the exposure cases were reported as unintentional with 19.4% of those calls involving children from infancy through age 4.
A study from Colorado also showed that the number of cannabis associated emergency room visits rose dramatically after marijuana was legalized in the state, with a disproportionate number involving edible marijuana products. The amounts of THC are concentrated in edible marijuana products making it easier for people to unintentionally ingest dangerously high and toxic levels of THC. This is especially true for a toddler who finds and eats a gummy bear or brownie that contains concentrated levels of THC as well as for non-regular recreational users of marijuana who aren’t aware of their tolerance for these types of products. The jury is still out as to whether an overdose of marijuana can be fatal, but an overdose is still an overdose and is very likely to have a negative impact on a person’s overall health.
The evidence speaks for itself. Marijuana is not a benign substance that has positive properties that can “help” people. Overwhelmingly, research shows that legalizing marijuana and associated cannabis products comes with a variety of risks. Given the fact that drug overdoses have increased throughout the Commonwealth over the past several years, wouldn’t it have been prudent for the General Assembly to pass legislation aimed at curbing the drug epidemic instead of increasing it?
