For a long time, cannabis was considered a dangerous entry drug. In recent years, however, it has not only gained in secret in popularity, but also publicly acceptance. Whether one speaks of dope, weed or marijuana, Ganja, grass or hemp - cannabis is according to the global drug survey that the second most common drug after alcohol and nicotine. In Europe it is still the most frequently taken illegal substance, and in Germany it was by far the most traded narcotics.
In more and more countries, smoking weed is legal not only for medical purposes, but also for pure enjoyment. Soon to land here, too, if it goes according to the incumbent government. "We are introducing the controlled distribution of cannabis to adults for recreational purposes in licensed shops," says the coalition agreement of 2021.
In the meantime, researchers have put together a lot of knowledge about cannabis and smoke that makes the legal frenzy with green glasses more unattractive than some imagine. It is correspondingly important to decide on suitable measures to prevent damage.
Sure, cannabis doesn't get addicted as quickly as heroin. Carefully dosed, it can improve the general feeling of well-being, soothe and relieve pain. Since the legalization of cannabis – for medical use or as a stimulant – there has been an increasing number of professional cultivation in several states, which tends to lead to high-quality breeding. But there are always new, uncontrolled variants in circulation. A striking number of products containing dangerous synthetic cannabinoids are circulating in Europe. And the trend continues, cannabis is as strong as ever.
All of this should consider who plans to legalize the drug for pleasure purposes, or use the joint despite the ban. If you want to smoke, you can at most be risk -conscious, but never sure (see "If you have smoke, then with a risk as low as possible"). Especially not as a teenager. At the same time, the more consumers know about effect, nature and consumer options, the less the risk of unintentionally harming itself.
The high comes from THC.
The number of cannabis users has increased by almost 18 percent in the past ten years. Even during pandemic times, it was hard -working, Lockdowns and contact restrictions hardly changed anything (see "Drug consumption in pandemic"). Now it usually has no negative consequences to sometimes smoke a joint or eat hashocks. But cannabis is a drug that can make mentally dependent on regular consumption. As exactly, it is still being researched.
It is already known that the plant contains at least 60 different substances, the cannabinoids, some of which change consciousness. A medically interesting active ingredient of hemp is the weakly psychoactive cannabidiol (CBD), which has an antispasmodic and anti-inflammatory effect and can also be used against nausea and anxiety. However, another compound has a much more intense effect: delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). This is what many plant breeders are after.
The chemical structure of THC is similar in its form of the anandamide connection, which is naturally occurring in the body. Anandamides are responsible for sending chemical messages from nerve cell to nerve cell. By binding to certain receptors, they influence, among other things, how people taste, smell, hear, how they think, move and concentrate. There are two main types of the receptors. CB2 receptors are mainly on cells of the immune system, CB1 receptors on nerve cells in the brain. Now docks THC instead of anandamide to CB1, you are in the frenzy.
Drug use as a pandemic issue
The cannabis business remained almost untouched by coronapandemic. The cultivation of cannabis in the European Union was at the same level in 2020 as before. Some users have adapted their behavior, there were less obstacle stoners who smoked, less often shared their joints with others. But dealers found sales, users the desired products.
Those who occasionally used drugs before the corona pandemic have restricted or even completely abandoned their consumption during this time. On the other hand, those who regularly used cannabis, heroin or other drugs consumed more during the time. Studies would indicate this, according to the European Drug Report 2021.
What many users of cannabis wondered: to what extent should I adapt my behavior based on Corona? "In recent years, sharing a joint, which has been seen in the past as an expression of friendship, community and generosity, has inevitably been a possible transmission path for covid and thus something that should be avoided," says Global Drug Survey Report 2021.
Finding out to what extent the pandemic influences user behavior was a core topic of the current survey. Accordingly, more people rolled or stuffed their joints and bongs themselves. They also refused offered joints more often, opened the windows more often – when smoking with others – than before the pandemic and kept their distance.
How strong a joint is is determined by the amount of CBD and THC. Cannabidiol can mitigate the effect of THC. If the amount is big enough, you feel rather relaxed to sleepy after smoking. However, if the cannabis has a particularly low CBD share in the bag, hallucinations can be expected.
It has so far been unclear which CBD and THC shares should be legal for use to enjoy here in the future. A quantity limitation is also planned, but the value has not yet been determined. In patients who are treated with cannabis in Germany, the amount is currently measured as required and recipe. "For example, there are 30-gram units with a THC content of 18 to 21.8 percent," explains pharmacist Frank Buffleb. Cannabis from abroad are currently needed for more potent means. In Germany, only two varieties of the plant, one with 14 percent THC content, the other with 20 percent.
In the USA, the amount varies by state: in Oregon, people over the age of 21 are allowed to possess up to one ounce of marijuana (around 30 grams) when they are in public, eight times as much at home. In Canada, on the other hand, the minimum age in most provinces and territories is 19 years, up to 30 grams of dried cannabis or equivalents such as 150 grams of fresh cannabis or 30 seeds of cannabis plants are allowed.
One of the managing directors of the German cannabis manufacturer Demecan, Adrian Fischer, speaks out for a gradation according to age limits: "For example, from the age of 18 you could only buy products with up to 10 percent THC, from the age of 21 also stronger flowers." The 10 percent In some scientific studies, the brand is rated as a limit between low and high content.
The strongest marijuana ever produced
Now there are two questionable developments with regard to the potency of the drug. First of all, it is problematic that the THC content of the plants has increased significantly in the past decades. This indicates samples that have been published in studies from time to time. The values vary depending on the variety, growing conditions and processing as well as the examination period and location, also because there are no official controls. According to a study, it can be said that the potency of cannabis herb and resin between 2006 and 2016 has doubled. According to a meta-analysis, the THC share in cannabis flowers increased by 14 percent between 1970 and 2017, and has been increased by Haschisch between 1975 and 2017. The hashish obtained from the resin of the cannabis plant is therefore now stronger than normal grass.
There are people who would prefer a more gentle grass over forms with high THC potency. This is shown by data from the Global Drug Surveys of recent years. At the same time, "many consumers consider products with higher THC content to be better," says addiction researcher Adam Winstock, director of the Global Drug Survey. Studies suggest that although products with a higher THC content cause better intoxication, they are also associated with a higher rate of undesirable effects such as memory loss and paranoia. "Ultimately, cannabis products with a higher THC content - similar to alcohol – are more difficult to adjust to the desired effect and can lead to a faster development of tolerance," says Winstock.
The second questionable development: it appears more and more contaminated grass. According to the German hemp association, there are all sorts of products on the black market that are stretched, for example, with sand, talc, sugar, hairspray or other ingredients. Depending on the substance and quantity, this is hazardous to health. In addition - and this development rates experts as particularly questionable - grass, which was sprayed with synthetic cannabinoids. In the first quarter of 2021 alone, German customs ensured more than 150 kilograms of this dangerous mix of imports from Switzerland and from the Netherlands.
The artificial compounds that are in chemical grass are often many times stronger than the THC. The risk of addiction is therefore comparatively greater, overdoses are more likely, panic attacks, dizziness, rapid heartbeat, psychoses possible consequences of intoxication. In some cases, this even ends fatally.
It is not recognizable for consumers whether someone is buying a stretched cannabis with chemical ras. Take a sniff, smell, touch it - everything is of no use. A laboratory test alone provides useful results. And who would officially test his illegal drug?
An argument in favor of legalization is clean, healthy grass.
If cannabis were legal, an argument of the legalization advocates, there would finally be an official quality control and thus tested sources of supply. Other pro-arguments are economic. According to an investigation, legalization could bring income of up to 4.7 billion euros. Jobs would also be created because someone finally has to grow, breed, process and sell the intoxicant, the paper says. In addition, the police and the judiciary would be relieved, for example because there were less criminal proceedings (see "What is in the law?").
Adrian Fischer of Demecan assumes that a release will be followed by less strict regulations for the production: "At present, everything must be protected under the Narcotics Act, this is very time-consuming and could change with legalization." Certainly, companies would continue to work according to a high standard – there should be significantly more then than now – but "just not with the highest".
What does the law say?
The use of cannabis is not punishable by law. To own it already. Anyone who consumes cannabis should therefore expect legal consequences (deadline for editing: April 6, 2022). The Narcotics Act (BtMG) stipulates in Germany that any possession of cannabis and cannabis products is punishable by law. Trade and cultivation are also prohibited, as with other illegal drugs, for example cocaine. According to § 29 et seq. of the BtMG, possession of cannabis results in a prison sentence of up to five years or a fine.
In theory, some of the criminal proceedings initiated can be stopped. It is crucial whether the cannabis is for yourself and how much it is about. Depending on the federal state, the tolerance area is 6 to 15 grams. If you consume, you endanger others, there is a punishment in any case.
A joint against nausea? It is not easy to get a prescription for medical cannabis. On the one hand, doctors must have exhausted all other therapy options beforehand. On the other hand, only patients with serious illnesses are eligible. Which these are is not defined in more detail in the law. However, doctors must justify the prescription to the health insurance company (§ 31 paragraph 6 SGB V).
In fact, it is unclear whether legalization ultimately has a positive or negative effect. Study data from countries in which it is already allowed to own and sell cannabis, deliver mixed results. They indicate a positive impact on social justice - repression complicates that criminalization currently affects young people with destructive hardness - at the same time the risk increases. "The higher the consumption, the higher the search risk," says addiction researcher Kiefer. If cannabis becomes legal, more people could be willing to try it out and tend to be becoming intoxicating more often.
In the United States, more adults in particular now consume the substance regularly. With what consequences, an overview from 2020 suggests: there are more instructions to the hospital because of an acute overdose, such as poisoning in children or cyclical vomiting. "It is unclear whether there are more traffic accidents, dependencies, mental disorders, treatment demands and suicides," said psychologist Eva in an interview with "Brain & Spirit". "Nevertheless, the findings suggest that the problems increase as a whole."
The number of young consumers has also increased in the United States, according to some studies. Only conditionally, but still worthy of attention. Because cannabis is much more dangerous for young people than for adults.
On the one hand, the search risk already mentioned is: "It is individually different, but is related to age," says Kiefer. "The earlier you consume cannabis, the higher the risk of becoming dependent." In addition, grass changes the brain of adolescents - regular smoke leads to a thinning of the cerebral cortex in the prefrontal cortex, which is important, for example, for impulse control, planning and concentration . Consumption also increases the risk of a heart attack in young people, the smoke can damage the lungs sustainably. And especially for young people there is a risk of psychosis with regular cannabis use.
Will cannabis self-cultivation continue to be illegal?
Politicians who discuss the approval should and want to deal with research results. By introducing the controlled submission of cannabis to adults, the quality would be checked, the transfer of contaminated substances prevented and ensures that the protection of minors, according to the coalition agreement. A topic that deals with many Germans when they think about legalization (see "What worries do you have about cannabis legalization?"). "We always measure regulations on new scientific knowledge and organize measures to protect health," it can be read there.
In his function as President of the German Society for Addiction Research and Addiction Therapy, addiction researcher Falk Kiefer, together with colleagues from various professional societies, formulated five requirements for political decision-makers in a position paper in line with this. The protection of minors should be expanded, to spend cannabis accordingly only after checking the age from the age of 18 – even only from the age of 21. This is to be followed up in more detail, as strikingly more young people would try cannabis after legalization (see "Would you try cannabis if it were legalized?«). Illegal trade should be consistently stopped and sales to young people should be appropriately punished, according to the February 2022 paper. "Parallel to the increasing tax revenues from the sale of cannabis for intoxicating purposes and on a comparable scale, the health sector must receive additional funds" in order to be able to protect, treat and – the fourth point – to enable comprehensive, accompanying research. Last but not least, the professional societies are calling for a panel of experts to advise the government closely.
"Who benefits from legalization?" That is a crucial question, says Kiefer. "It will primarily help those who can consume cannabis every now and then and then do so legally." But that is only a small proportion of three to five percent of the population. “How do you connect this to the protection of minors? Who wants to prohibit self -growing when cannabis can be sold? Justify the relief of the judiciary the additional challenges for the health system? «All questions that need to be clarified.
It should be noted that cannabis should not be underestimated. The possible damage can be limited, and a high can relax as often as desired, help to fall asleep, lift the mood, relieve pain and counteract boredom. There is no safe or even healthy use of the drug. Legal or not.
