CHANDIGARH, Punjab—The consumption of marijuana is once again becoming trendy in Punjab as the drug addicted Punjabi youths (especially the financially weak ones) are now switching to marijuana because of its negligible cost and easy availability. Before the entrance of synthetic drugs in Punjab, the usage of marijuana was common in Punjab.
Marijuana comes from the dried flowers of the cannabis plant. It has more than 500 chemicals, including the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD). Cannabis can have a psychoactive — or mind-altering — effect on the consumer.
The cannabis plants could be easily found on the banks of roads, canals, railway lines, infertile land and flood canals. A majority of Nihang Singhs in Punjab consume marijuana by triturating it with poppy seeds to prepare a product named “Sukh Nidhaan” while some others consume it via smoking.
“Paapads” or “Pakodas” containing marijuana could be easily observed selling even on small tiny shops in Punjab.
Speaking to Sikh24, a drug addicted youth informed that he was addicted of poppy husk and opium, but the availability of these duo drugs is not common in Punjab due to which it is availed at very high rates by the smugglers indulged in the trade of these two drugs. “I often use marijuana when the thrust of drugs become unbearable for me,” he added while admitting that he knows the poisonous effects of marijuana.
Another marijuana consumer told Sikh24 that there is no legal ban on the consumption of marijuana due to which it becomes a safe-heaven for them.
Sukhraj Singh, who works in a CBSE school, holds the Punjabi singers responsible for the promotion of drugs in Punjab. Talking about the rising trend of marijuana consumption among youths of Punjab, he recounts several marijuana promoting Punjabi songs, including the recent one “Gaddi Jatt Di Cho Uthde Warole, Kudi Marijuana Khichdi…”.
If not controlled, the rising trend of marijuana consumption could emerge as a new problem for the Punjab masses because the youths with poor financial background can also easily get marijuana free of cost in Punjab or at negligible cost.
How does marijuana affect the brain?
Marijuana has both short-and long-term effects on the brain.
Short-Term Effects
When a person smokes marijuana, THC quickly passes from the lungs into the bloodstream. The blood carries the chemical to the brain and other organs throughout the body. The body absorbs THC more slowly when the person eats or drinks it. In that case, they generally feel the effects after 30 minutes to 1 hour.
THC acts on specific brain cell receptors that ordinarily react to natural THC-like chemicals. These natural chemicals play a role in normal brain development and function.
Marijuana over-activates parts of the brain that contain the highest number of these receptors. This causes the “high” that people feel. Other effects include:
- altered senses (for example, seeing brighter colors)
- altered sense of time
- changes in mood
- impaired body movement
- difficulty with thinking and problem-solving
- impaired memory
- hallucinations
- delusions
- psychosis
Long-Term Effects
Marijuana also affects brain development. When people begin using marijuana as teenagers, the drug may impair thinking, memory, and learning functions and affect how the brain builds connections between the areas necessary for these functions. Researchers are still studying how long marijuana’s effects last and whether some changes may be permanent.
For example, a study from New Zealand conducted in part by researchers at Duke University showed that people who started smoking marijuana heavily in their teens and had an ongoing marijuana use disorder lost an average of 8 IQ points between ages 13 and 38. The lost mental abilities didn’t fully return in those who quit marijuana as adults.
