Harmful effects of smoking marijuana

By Kayode Oseni

Cannabis Sativa and Cannabis Indica, are the two main species of the hemp plant, also commonly called marijuana or weed.

It is indeed a very useful herb when used in the way nature intended it, and smoking it is definitely not the natural way. The oil from the seeds and leaves, known as Hemp Oil is being used worldwide now as more and more people are going back to Nature for cures, especially in those areas where conventional medicine has failed.

Hemp Oil is used in Asian countries and Europe for the treatment of some types of cancer.

Now, to the issue at hand: Effect of Smoking Hemp.
Having established that hemp is a beneficial plant, it is now for me to give reasons why its wrong usage, through smoking is dangerous to health, physically, psychological and spiritually.

Physical Risks:
The risks of respiratory effects from inhaling marijuana smoke are heightened by the more intensive way in which marijuana is smoked; When smoking marijuana compared to tobacco, there is a prolonged and deeper inhalation and it is smoked to a shorter length and at a higher combustion temperature. This results in approximately 5 times the carbon monoxide concentration, 3 times the tar, and the retention of one-third more tar in the respiratory tract. Higher levels of ammonia and hydrogen cyanide have also been found in marijuana smoke, compared to tobacco

Physiological Effects of Smoking Marijuana:
Signs of using marijuana include:
Rapid heart rate.
Increased blood pressure.
Increased rate of breathing.
Red eyes.
Dry mouth.
Increased appetite, or “the munchies”.
Slowed reaction time.

These effects are reduced after three or four hours.

However, marijuana hangs around in your system for as long as a month after smoking. The lingering effects mean you’re impaired for several days to weeks after the high wears off.

Psychological Effects of Smoking Marijuana:
According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the main effects of marijuana on mood vary and may include euphoria, calmness, anxiety, or paranoia. Getting high or “stoned” is the reason most pot smokers use marijuana.

Other short-term psychological effects of smoking pot include:
Distorted sense of time.
Paranoia
Magical or “random” thinking.
Short-term memory loss.
Anxiety and depression.

These psychological signs of using pot also generally ease after a few hours. But residual effects can last for days.

The Spiritual Effects of Smoking Hemp: 
Smoking Hemp pollutes the environment by the carbon monoxide generated and the other dangerous gases produced on combustion are also not environmental friendly. But in case you feel this is not your concern,then listen: Smoking hemp interferes with connection between the body and the soul, creating a dissociated condition that interferes with spiritual consciousness.

You will notice this by the withdrawn and aloof disposition of the one who just had a smoke. 

Smokers may at times look peaceful on the outside, but this is because their fuzzy aura condition keeps them from fully feeling their emotions; this escape from emotional discomfort or reality is of course temporary, while it lasts there is this feeling of ”euphoria ”,which makes them unable to address their pains, and that means they cannot live in conscious experiencing of that very moment.

This in itself negates the purpose of coming to earth. We are here to experience, learn necessary lessons, and grow.

It is said that all experiencing, either sad or joyful are all for our maturing.

Any attempt to escape from them is tantamount to willfully postponing a class, which must be taken again and this will lead to many unnecessary reincarnations.

Smoking hemp beclouds the intuitive faculty, the sense of shame becomes suppressed, and one’s confidence becomes over-inflated to abnormal proportions; these makes the smoker particularly vulnerable to influences from disincarnate souls and as such evil acts could be perpetuated through the smoker which he wouldn’t ordinarily do without the effects of the hemp smoking.

Lastly, it has been established that any form of smoking changes the pH level of the blood to acidic, and cancer cells thrive mostly in acidic environment. The blood is the link through which the spirit controls the body; The blood pH determines the blood radiation,and it is this radiation that connects the body with the spirit.

Anything that affects the blood pH also affects the blood radiation, and thus weakens this spirit-body link.

In conclusion, cannabis is a very useful plant, but other ways of using it apart from smoking are advisable.

• Dr Oseni is the Chief Consultant at Alayo Health & Wellness Centre, Abeokuta, Ogun State
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