NIDA’s Dr. Volkow Dispels Myths about Smoking Marijuana in New Article
In a new article in the Washington Post, Dr. Nora Volkow, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, explains why legalizing marijuana in Colorado and Washington state is a risky social experiment that could lead to a slew of negative consequences and increase youth marijuana use.
For those who argue that marijuana is no more dangerous than tobacco and alcohol, Dr. Volkow has two main answers: We don’t entirely know, and, simultaneously, that is precisely the point.
“Look at the evidence,” Volkow said in the article. “It’s not subtle — it’s huge. Legal drugs are the main problem that we have in our country as it relates to morbidity and mortality. By far. Many more people die of tobacco than all of the drugs together. Many more people die of alcohol than all of the illicit drugs together.
“And it’s not because they are more dangerous or addictive. Not at all — they are less dangerous. It’s because they are legal. . . . The legalization process generates a much greater exposure of people and hence of negative consequences that will emerge. And that’s why I always say, ‘Can we as a country afford to have a third legal drug? Can we?’ We know the costs already on health care, we know the costs on accidents, on lost productivity. I let the numbers speak for themselves.”
Dr. Volkow goes on to say that the arguments that marijuana is safer and harmless aren’t backed by the science, especially when it comes to adolescents.
“I think that what we are seeing is a little bit of wishful thinking in the sense that we want to have a drug that will make us all feel good and believe that there are no harmful consequences,” she said. “When you are intoxicated, your memory and learning are going to go down. When you are intoxicated, your motor coordination is going to go down. When you are repeatedly using marijuana, there is an increased risk for addiction. And if you are an adolescent and you are taking marijuana, there is a higher increased risk for addiction and there is also a higher risk for long-lasting decreases in cognitive capacity — that is, lowering of IQ.”
Read the full article.
NIDA's Dr. Volkow Dispels Myths about Smoking Marijuana in New Article
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