Almost 4 Percent Of People Worldwide Use Cannabis
Posted on: Friday, 16 October 2009, 14:19 CDT
One in 25 adults worldwide currently use cannabis, regardless of the health concerns the drug may cause, researchers reported Friday.
Writing in The Lancet, Australian professors Wayne Hall and Louisa Degenhardt, used data from the UN Office on Drugs and Crime which found that about 166 million people aged 15-64 were using cannabis in 2006.
This figure translates into 3.9 percent of the world’s population.
Hall and Degenhardt noted that use of the illegal drug has been contributed to health concerns, including threats to heart health, increased risks of anxiety, risk of dependence and car accidents.
"Acute adverse effects of cannabis use include anxiety and panic in naive [first-time] users, and a probable increased risk of accidents if users drive while intoxicated," researchers wrote.
What’s more researchers noted that nine percent of people who try cannabis eventually become dependent on it, compared to 32 percent of those who try nicotine, 23 percent for heroin, 17 percent for cocaine and 15 percent for alcohol.
Additionally, cannabis use during pregnancy “could reduce birthweight, but does not seem to cause birth defects. Whether cannabis contributes to behavioral disorders in the offspring of women who smoked cannabis is uncertain."
The study also cited information from seized cannabis to show that levels of THC are on the rise, which may also lead to an increase of health concerns for the drug’s users.
"A high THC content can increase anxiety, depression and psychotic symptoms in naive users, while increasing the risk of dependence and psychotic symptoms if regular users do not titrate their dose."
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Source: RedOrbit Staff & Wire Reports
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User Comments (1)
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Posted by mendo on 10/17/2009, 21:39 "probable increased risk of accidents if users drive while intoxicated" so basically, this statement is absolutely irrelavent because cannabis 'might' increase the risk of car accidents. Where as, cell phone use, fatigued driving, and drunk driving have all been PROVEN to increase the chances of accidents. this whole article is retarded at best. take it at face value: "4% of the world's population uses cannabis." that's the only piece of fact here. |
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