Essay About Marijuana’S Short And Brain Stem

Marijuana’s Short and Long Term Effects on the Brain
Essay title: Marijuana’s Short and Long Term Effects on the Brain
MARIJUANA’S SHORT AND LONG TERM EFFECTS ON THE BRAIN
Millions are abusing marijuana every day. In fact, 1 out of 7 high school students smoke
marijuana more than once a day. Marijuana is taken very lightly and is the most highly used
illegal drug. For this reason, society should know its short and long term effects on the brain.
Marijuana can effect these two areas emotionally or physically. Also in some cases physical
damages causes the emotional response. Although most public information on drugs are funded
by anti-drug organizations, hopefully we will still learn these true facts of marijuana in spite of
that.
The brain is the most complicated part of the human body. I will begin explaining certain
parts and their functions. In doing this to I hope to give a better understand of our brain while
implicating the possibilities of chemical induced complications “The brain with its 15 billion
neurons and nerve cells operates using chemical and electrical messages: (Swanson, 1975). This
is how we perceive our senses. Differences in the way our brain translates these
messages can impair perceptions. Hallucinogens prevent the brain from receiving all of these
messages in order. All of the information that we receive is through millions of transactions of
neurons, like a computer, marijuana alters these transactions.
After smoking, or consuming marijuana, it is distributed in the brain. The concentration
of marijuana in the brain may be governed by an active transport process in the choroid plexus
network of blood vessels in the brain which regulates intraventricular pressure by absorption
and secretion of cerebro spinal fluid. one scientific experiment it gave an example of how the
distribution of marijuana in the central nervous system could effect man. At a high dose of 30
mg./kg. marked sedation and pronounced motor incoordination peaked at the one hour interval
subsiding in 8 hours when over reaction occurred to external stimuli; man reveals incapacitation
of cognitive and motor function. High concentrations of marijuana are usually found in the
following parts of the brain: the frontal cortex (the general association area), and hippocampus
(short term memory and oreintation). As a result, perception of time, mood and general
cordination is impaired. It is apparent that marijuana intoxication effects the neurological
functions and usually disappears in 24 hours, but can become a permanent malfunction.THC
effects the limbic system which is vital to some every day functions. The brain is made up of 3
basic cerebral types differing in structure, chemistry and organization (MacLean, 1970). These
are: 1) reptilian or brain stem responsible for instinctive (survival) behavior (and regulator of vital
functions of the body) 2) old mammalian (paleocortex) or limbic brain surrounding the brain
stem (like a lap or limbus) having an important role in emotional behavior and motivation
(contains opiate receptors) 3) new mammailian (neo cortex) brain (thinking cap) with the
capacity for symbolic (written and spoken language). The 3 subdivisions of the limbic cortical
system or ring are linked by 3 pathways to the brain stem. The lower part (hippocampusi
memory information) of the ring connected