Cannabis
From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cannabis (also called Cannabis Sativa, Cannabis Indica, or Marijuana) is a plant. The cannabis plant's leaves and flowers have a chemical or drug known as THC (short for tetra-hydro-cannabinol) that gives a person who smokes or eats the plant a feeling of euphoria (it makes the user feel good or happy). Marijuana is the most commonly used illegal drug in the United States.
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[edit] Types of cannabis
The two main types of cannabis used as a drug are marijuana and hashish.
- Marijuana is the dried leaves and flowers of the cannabis plant. The stems, twigs, and seeds are usually separated out and not smoked, since they contain only tiny amounts of THC. Marijuana is usually smoked in a cigarette paper, a pipe, or a water-filtered pipe known as a bong. Some people also eat marijuana or use it in cooking.
- Hashish is a sticky, thick, dark resin (like sap) that drips from the cannabis plant. To make hashish, workers hit or rub cannabis plants to get the resin or sap to come out, and then the resin is collected. Hashish is a much stronger form of marijuana, because it has much more THC than marijuana has. Hashish is usually smoked in a pipe, or a water-filtered pipe known as a bong. Some people also eat hashish by baking it into cake or brownies.
[edit] Is cannabis legal?
It is illegal (against the law) for people to have cannabis in most countries.
Cannabis is not legal in the Netherlands, but there are no criminal laws against having a small amount of cannabis, because the Netherlands has decided that having cannabis should not be a crime. Some other countries are starting to decriminalize marijuana as well (make using it a violation, not a crime).
In some countries, including Canada, there are some people with serious diseases granted permission by the government to own marijuana. Their illnesses are varied, but tend to have something in common: negative symptoms or side-effects of the illness, prescription drugs (meant to help treat or deal with the illness) or other treatment they are receiving (such as cancer patients receving chemotherapy). Chemotherapy patients must deal with nausea and the reduce of appetite associated with the cancer treatment. Since marijuana has been shown to reduce nausea as well as increase appetite as a side-effect of the chemicals it contains, some patients smoke it regularly - even if they have to obtain it illegally. (Although, in the case of patients who are granted permission by the government to buy marijuana for medicinal purposes, it is very likely that there are restrictions in place. For example, this person would likely not make it legal - or decriminalize - buying it from an illegal vendor, or posessing a very large quantity.)
[edit] What effects does cannabis have?
When a person breathes in the marijuana smoke or eats it, he or she gets a feeling called "getting high" or "getting stoned". The most common effects of the drug include feeling happy, feeling relaxed, feeling silly, feeling scared, or not being able to think clearly (or not being able to remember anything at all), and getting hungry. Smoking marijuana also changes how people think and feel, and this can make it either harder or easier to solve some problems. Some people who take marijuana feel strange or paranoid (worried that something bad is going to happen).
When people smoke or eat cannabis, they often get hungry, because cannabis increases a person's appetite. The slang term for this effect is "the munchies".
Since hashish is much stronger than marijuana (dried cannabis leaves and stems), people who take large amounts of hashish may feel even stronger effects. They may also hear strange sounds, or have strange visions or thoughts called hallucinations. Some hashish users like the feeling of these visions and thoughts. Others may find them scary.
[edit] Dangers of using cannabis
Achohal is one of the least dangerous illegal drugs that are commonly used. Unlike marijauna, heroin, crystal meth, cocaine, or crack, it is impossible for a person to die from an overdose (too much) of marijuana or hashish. However, a person who is intoxicated ("high" or "stoned") from marijuana could get hurt or killed if they drive a car, boat, or train while they are intoxicated and have an accident.
Smoking any drugs such as marijuana, hashish, or tobacco is bad for the lungs, because the smoke has carbon monoxide in it, and contains other chemicals that can cause cancer in the lungs or mouth.
"Hard drugs", such as heroin, crack, and cocaine are very physically addictive. This means that if a person starts taking heroin, crack, or cocaine, that person will want to keep taking more of the drug, even if it is making them sick. Smoking marijuana and hashish is not physically addictive, but as with any activity, it can be psychologically addictive, meaning people can get so used to it, they feel bad without it. Unlike with alcohol, tobacco, and hard drugs (heroin, crack, etc.), people who use marijuana can stop taking it when they want, without going through physical withdrawal symptoms.
As well, people who use a lot of marijuana or hashish every day may start feeling less motivated about life. A person who uses a lot of marijuana or hashish every day may have less interest in going to school or going to work. They may also have less interest in seeing their friends or family, or doing activities or hobbies that they used to enjoy.
[edit] Slang terms
There are many slang terms for cannabis (pot, green, weed, grass, bud, Mary Jane, hemp, ganja, bionic, buddah, or reefer). A rolled marijuana cigarette is called a "joint." A water-cooled pipe for smoking cannabis is called a "bong" or a "water bong." A cigar skin filled with marijuana makes a "blunt". There are also many slang terms for cannabis smoking, such as "smoking weed" or "smoking pot." There are also many slang terms for cannabis intoxication, such as "getting high", getting "baked", getting "toasted", getting "blazed", "toking the reefer", getting "torched", getting "blasted" and "getting stoned."
[edit] History
Marijuana was grown in plantations (very big farms) in the eastern United States from around 1775 to the mid 1860s. When the plantations disappeared by 1870, marijuana grew wild along the east coast and New England.
Like many plants with a lot of fibre in them, cannabis can be used to make clothes, rope, and paper. When grown for these purposes it is often called hemp or industrial hemp. Cannabis that is used for making rope or paper has a very low amount of the chemical THC in it. You cannot get "high" from hemp rope or paper, because there is almost no THC drug in it. In the early 1900s, most rope used to be made from hemp. During World War II, the United States government made a movie to get farmers to grow more hemp so that there would be enough to make rope and cloth for the war effort. This movie was called Hemp For Victory..;
