Posts Tagged influence
Marijuana Addiction Symptoms
Posted on November 9, 2011 | Drug Abuse.
Facts about marijuana: The drug marijuana is usually used by people in herbal form and is also known as Cannabis. Everybody should be informed that the mere use of marijuana is drug abuse. People have called marijuana as safe and harmless than other types of drugs. However, they refuse to deny the fact that the drug actually causes psychological and physical problems. Marijuana is in fact a hallucinogen, is addictive and harmful.
Facts About Marijuana Addiction Symptoms.
Marijuana can become mentally, emotionally and physically addictive. Your mind starts thinking of nothing else but the drug and you start attracting people who are also using it. Once a person becomes completely addicted, he can then function correctly when under the influence of the drug. These addicted people tend to think that only marijuana can solve their problem, thus resulting to constant abuse. Addicted people get worried when their stash is already dried up.
Some of these addiction symptoms include the following:
- Tolerance. Addicted people require higher amounts of marijuana just to achieve their desired level of intoxication. Their tolerance increases as they get used to the same amount of marijuana. As a result, these people use marijuana in large amounts for longer periods of time than what they intend to.
- Inability to stop using marijuana. Although some people might want to stop using the drug, their addiction just keeps them looking for more of the drug. This addict ends up spending most of his money on the drug.
- Reduced social, occupational and recreational activities. The addicted person becomes unattached to his former social group and instead focuses and spends only more time on people with the same interests in marijuana.
Myths and Facts about Marijuana Addiction:
Marijuana causes a lasting mental illness. When a person is intoxicated, he commonly behaves differently. Although there isn’t plenty of evidence that suggest that marijuana does create a lasting insanity, psychological sufferings such as anxiety, panic or paranoia are triggered with the use of the drug. Marijuana is very much addictive. In order to stop dependence on the drug, an habitual user often experiences symptoms of withdrawal causing them to return to the abusive use of marijuana. In order to stop the addiction, the help of a professional is highly needed.
Marijuana in the present is more potent than in the past. People say that young people nowadays are in greater danger since they are using more potent marijuana than before. This hasn’t been proven yet but common sense tells us that everything is improving and so why not this drug? Marijuana crimes are not harshly punished. It is believed that more and more people become encouraged to use the drug since they think that only a few people get arrested because of marijuana. According to statistics, this is barely half-truth since users do get arrested and put in jail. All countries in the world have laws regarding drugs and this includes marijuana.
Marijuana causes greater damage to lungs compared to tobacco. The belief that the risks of getting lung cancer and other lung problems are increased by the use of marijuana is still under debate. However, one must remember that whatever you smoke, it has to cause some harm in your body.
Hair Follicle Drug Test Detection Window
Posted on November 2, 2011 | Drug Abuse.
There are many ways to test someone for drug use, and each way carries a different detection time frame. The most common method of testing is through urine, but unfortunately urine carries a very short time frame – a couple weeks at most. Blood testing is generally used to see if someone is under the influence at the time the test is taken. The window period is extremely limited. For individuals seeking to cover an extended amount of time, the hair follicle test is probably their best option.
Hair follicle testing works by testing for metabolites of parent drugs that are most often implanted within the follicle via the bloodstream. Traces of drugs slowly leave the hair through normal daily activity and hygiene, but most will remain detectable for around three months. The average person grows hair at a rate of .5 inches per month. When the lab receives a hair specimen for testing, it is cut to a length of 1.5 inches, which creates roughly 3 months worth of growth and detection.
If someone does not have any or enough hair on their scalp for a proper collection, collectors will often resort to body hair (underarm, chest, arm or leg hair). Some people have made the connection that because body hair grows at a different rate than head hair, the detection window with body hair is extended to as long as 12 months.
Another important detail with hair follicle drug testing is that recent consumption tends to not show up in the results. The reason for this is that the metabolites that the test checks for take one to two weeks to actually become embedded within the follicle. For someone concerned about recent consumption only, they might consider a urine drug screen which is far more reliable for such situations. In addition to recent consumption, light usage of any substance may very well not show up in a hair follicle screen. There are certain cutoff levels in place to determine a positive result, and light usage may not quite meet the cutoff level for detection.
There are certainly a variety of options available for drug testing, and one option may seem better than all the others. Hair follicle drug testing is a great way to detect drug use over an extended period of time, but it may not be the best option in every single case. It is important to discuss your concerns thoroughly with whomever you arrange testing so that they can help make sure you are getting the test you want.