Cannabis.

Welcome to my blog about drugs, their effects, pros and cons and what they are. I will be talking about three popular drugs that can endanger you, these three are cannabis, MDMA or ecstasy and alcohol. I will be going into great depth about all three, then towards the end I will be giving my personal experiences on all three and how I do not touch any of them anymore.

I will be starting off with cannabis. This is the most common drug used and probably one of the cheapest. Weed appears as green buds on a stalk that you smoke or put into an edible form. You can become addicted to this in many ways and rely on certain effects to live a normal day. People who smoke weed regularly or people who are heavy users become addicted without even realising. If you feel like you are alone in any of these situations you are not, lots of people have experienced this addiction. Well-known Brad Pitt was once addicted to cannabis in 2012 he stated, “I got really sick of myself at the end of the 1990s: I was hiding out from the celebrity thing; I was smoking way too much dope; I was sitting on the couch and just turning into a doughnut; and I really got irritated with myself.” In the end he realized it was a waste and wanted to sort his ways out and grew emotionally and stopped using the substance in 2007 when he became a father. 

There are a lot of different ways that people view cannabis. There are many pros and cons such as weed can help with nausea, sleeping issues, eating issues, muscle pain and so much more whereas the cons can be, you can become addicted to nicotine as well when smoking it, meaning you will have another unhealthy addiction. Another con would be that it is illegal to drive whilst intoxicated on it increasing chances of accidents. 6% of the UK’S population smokes weed which is a very high amount of people. The most weed is smoked in Iceland where 18.6% of people smoke it. Lots of people smoke weed for personal problems as it can help anxiety and when intoxicated can make you relaxed and happy. Some people need weed for certain areas in their life for example eating and sleeping.

Where weed has a lot of positives and not many negatives, MDMA is the complete opposite with not very many positives and a lot of negatives. For example, a positive is that it causes stimulant effects. However, the negatives completely outweigh the number of positives such as causing confusion, depression, anxiety, sleeplessness, craving for the drug, and paranoia. The reason lots of people use it as it gives you a lot of energy which is why it is mainly used at parties and raves. More than 10% of teenagers have taken MDMA. People become reliant on it because it gives you energy so whenever you feel down some people will just take it to wake them up.

Believe it or not, ecstasy was only made illegal in 1985 after being created in the early 20^th century. Originally formed in Germany, it was used in pharmacies for the treatment of bleeding and then became widely available on the streets for use. When the tablet is taken it takes about 45 minutes for the effect to start occurring.

Alcohol. 

Even though alcohol is legal, and you are allowed to drink it, it is still dangerous and there are a lot of downsides to it. Alcohol is addictive, which is why it is classed as a drug. Drinking a lot of alcohol or drinking in heavy amounts is how you become addicted to it. Alcohol only comes in one form which is a drink. Lots of people abuse alcohol and drink it daily to help them sleep. Drinking is the most common drug and a lot of people have become addicted to it. For example, Jane Lynch is a recovered alcoholic and has been sober for nearly 20 years after gaining fame from TV program ‘Glee.’

There are a lot of pros and cons about alcohol there are more cons. Some examples of pros would be that if you drink moderately, it can give you a few health benefits such as lower risk of diabetes, less chance of a stroke and lower your chance of developing and dying of a heart disease. Then here are some examples of some cons these are that it can cause aggressiveness, liver damage, some types of cancers and brain damage. Alcohol can become addictive very easily and people can drink it during their normal day to day routine. Heavy or high-risk drinking is defined as more than three drinks on any day or more than seven drinks a week for women and for men older than age 65, and more than four drinks on any day or more than 14 drinks a week for men aged 65 and younger.

If you drink in moderation, you have nothing to worry about and you can continue maintaining your health. The amount you’re supposed to drink a week is to keep health risks from alcohol to a low level if you drink most weeks: men and women are advised not to drink more than 14 units a week on a regular basis. spread your drinking over 3 or more days if you regularly drink as much as 14 units a week. Drinking too much alcohol can lead you to developing diseases and illnesses that can be fatal. Drinking also impairs your driving, meaning if you are under the influence of alcohol, you are putting yourself and other citizens at risk.