The Benefits and Abuse of Marijuana

Cannabis sativa is one of the oldest cultivated plants and has been used for various purposes. The plants are known for their resin production by glandular trichomes, with the maximum amount of resin coating the unfertilized carpellate flowers and adjacent leaves (Levetin and McMahon 2012). Marijuana today is used in illegal ways due to many people find ways to get enjoyment out of it or that’s how many actually have a sort of income.
Marijuana today has been allowed in some states to be used legally, but in many states it is still illegal and only those prescribed marijuana should be the ones to have it. Doctors prescribe marijuana to those with cancer.
However, metal contents were determined in different parts of the Cannabis plants; the cannabinoid content was measured only in the leaves, since the roots contain only trace amounts of these substances, while cannabinoid contents in the stems, branches and twigs are less than those in the leaf material (Pate 1994). Cannabis can be traced back to ancient China, where the hemp plant was valued for its fiber (for cloth, paper, and rope) (Levetin and McMahon 2012).

The earliest use of marijuana can be tracked back to 500 B.C. by the Scythian’s (Levetin and McMahon 2012). These plants are a good source of minerals and vitamins essential to take the edge off of malnutrition of the tribal people living in harsh environments. Wild plants, consumed by locals in the form of food, medicine, fuel, fodder, timber, fiber and for other purposes. The various parts, such as roots, rhizomes, tubers, bulbs, leaves, seeds, flowers, fruits, and barks are used for the above purposes (Kuddus, Mohammed, Ibrahim A. M. Ginawi, and Awdah Al-Hazimi 2015).
It was the hallucinogenic properties, however, that gave Cannabis an integral role in religious ceremonies for achieving a contemplative state and placed it as one of the five sacred plants of ancient India. For example, ganja is prepared from the resin-rich pistillate flowers and tops of specially bred high-yielding strains of marijuana and is usually smoked (Levetin and McMahon 2012).
This plant may have been used in many other forms before it was processed into marijuana but many countries used it in forms to smoke. I always worry about those who use it that don’t have a medical prescription because there are many types of marijuana and if you’re not safe with it, it could possibly mess with your memory in my opinion. There are worse types of marijuana such as spice that has a different effect than marijuana has on someone.
Cannabis is usually grown under hot, dry conditions that seem to optimize THC concentrations. The long-sought-after mind- altering effects of Cannabis include a sense of euphoria and calmness. Marijuana is used to treat glaucoma and as an aid to chemotherapy. Glaucoma is a group of eye diseases characterized by increased ocular pressure and resulting damage to the optic nerve that may lead to blindness. Testing has also shown THC to be effective in killing off cancerous cells of the brain, skin, blood, and prostate in tissue culture by inducing the tumor cells to undergo programmed cell death, or cell suicide (Levetin and McMahon 2012).
Cannabis has come a long way when it first arrived in China as just fabric and rope. To later be used as a chemical to help people get by in life. Some just think marijuana they never knew the original name or how it even started, so it is always neat to learn something new especially something that is used daily.
I find it neat how it can heal someone or just simply make them feel better for a period of time, but I also want to beware of all the side effects that the drug can hold while using it. There is always a reason to why things, such as this is prescribed by a doctor. Don’t trust many people because things have been smoked before that ended up killing people because their body didn’t react to the drug in the way it was proclaimed to react.
Works Cited

Plants and Society textbook 6th edition Levetin and McMahon 2012
Radosavljevic-Stevanovic, Natasa, et al. “Metals And Organic Compounds In The Biosynthesis Of Cannabinoids: A Chemometric
Approach To The Analysis Of Cannabis Sativa Samples.” Natural Product Research 28.8 (2014): 511-516. MEDLINE with Full Text. Web. 2 Dec. 2015.
Kuddus, Mohammed, Ibrahim A. M. Ginawi, and Awdah Al-Hazimi. “Cannabis Sativa: An Ancient Wild Edible Plant Of India.”Emirates Journal Of Food & Agriculture (EJFA) 25.10 (2013): 736-745. Academic Search Complete. Web. 2 Dec. 2015.