Study: The ‘Gateway Drug’ Is Alcohol, Not Marijuana
by Arjun Walia
How
many times have you heard that marijuana is a ‘gateway drug’ that leads
to more harmful drugs? It’s constantly used to fuel the negative
stigmatism that’s associated with marijuana. Previously, there was no
science behind this claim. In fact, all the science associated with
marijuana continues to detail its tremendous therapeutic potential for a
wide range of human ailments. It’s important to note that therapeutic
potentials are reached when it’s taken transdermally, not by smoking it.
By smoking it, you change the chemical composition of the plant.
A study published in the peer-reviewed Journal of School Health has
found that the theory of a “gateway drug” is not associated with
marijuana, but rather rather one of the most damaging and socially
accepted drug in the world, alcohol. (1)
The purpose of the study was to
investigate and determine which drug (alcohol, tobacco, or marijuana)
was the actual “gateway” drug that leads to additional substance abuse,
and it used a nationally representative sample of high school seniors.
Again, results indicated that alcohol
represented the “gateway” drug, which in turn lead to the use of
tobacco, marijuana, and other substances. Furthermore, students who used
alcohol “exhibited a significantly greater likelihood of using both
licit and illicit drugs.”
The study concluded:
The findings from this investigation support that alcohol should receive primary attention in school-based substance abuse prevention programming, as the use of other substances could be impacted by delaying or preventing alcohol use. Therefore, it seems prudent for school and public health officials to focus prevention efforts, policies, and monies, on addressing adolescent alcohol use.
This study is great to help lift the
stigmatism that’s often associated with marijuana. It makes absolutely
no sense that alcohol and smoking cigarettes is legal, with extremely
devastating health effects, while marijuana remains illegal with no
demonstrated lethal health effects. In fact, scientists have discovered
that cannabis may reduce brain damage caused by alcohol. You can read
more about that here.
It’s time for us to view marijuana for
exactly what it is, a therapeutic healing herb that should be used for
therapeutic medicinal purposes. Within the past few years, there has
been a tremendous surge of awareness with regards to the healing power
of cannabis, especially in relation to cancer. You can read more about
that here.
It’s also important to note that, while
drugs like alcohol could and do indeed lead to other harmful substance
abuse, the main issue with drug problems is the inner state of the
user. Some human beings use drugs to escape reality and run away from
problems they do not want to face. Many are lacking from within, so they
seek from without. Many people here do not feel well, as a result we
seek external substances to make us feel better. While these substances
may provide a temporary escape, nothing will ever go away until it is
cleared from within. We must learn to let go of what hurts us. We need
to face our issues, go through the emotions that make us turn towards
substance abuse without reaching out for a quick fix. By using
substances to cover up our issues, we are only hurting ourselves more.
Sources:
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/07/05/study-the-gateway-drug-is-alcohol-not-marijuana/
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