Health CONSEQUENCES
Fermented beverage recipes were found in the Mesopotamian ruins and the historical accounts of the Bible references consumption of wine at dinner and in social settings. The Pilgrims brought beer on the Mayflower to the New World and the colonists learned to make wine from many of the new fruits they found. Strong alcoholic mixes like rum were imported, but soon the colonists built their own distilleries in major cities like Boston. Alcohol production and consumption has always been a part of the United State's culture. Its use is prevalent throughout our nation and it is often used as a social past time. Today, we include alcohol as a source of entertainment at work parties, sporting events, and even religious based ceremonies such as weddings. Although not as socially accepted or popular as alcohol, marijuana is also commonly used in our country. According to a recent WebMD survey, over 34% of American adults and teenagers smoke marijuana (remember that because it is illegal, it is assumed that many survey participants did not answer truthfully). Both alcohol and marijuana can cause many negative behavioral consequences and health set backs. Evidence has correlated each substance with various cancers and other fatal diseases and chronic illnesses. Some research even links alcohol and marijuana to violent crimes including homicide. Although associated with many negative consequences, both alcohol and marijuana show potential benefits that are generally linked to the variable of moderation in their use.
Below is a chart used to organize the negative and positive consequences which stem from the use of alcohol and marijuana. As illustrated below, the health-related aspect of this argument presents a drawback in the case that prohibition of these two substances is bad. Rather, this information provides us with skeptisism that will later allow us to formulate an educated opinion on the matter. The data presented in the chart below summarizes information found by studies done by the MayoClinic.
Below is a chart used to organize the negative and positive consequences which stem from the use of alcohol and marijuana. As illustrated below, the health-related aspect of this argument presents a drawback in the case that prohibition of these two substances is bad. Rather, this information provides us with skeptisism that will later allow us to formulate an educated opinion on the matter. The data presented in the chart below summarizes information found by studies done by the MayoClinic.
A l c o h o l
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M a r i j u a n a
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Health consequences continued:
Thus far we have revealed the health consequences of common use of alcohol and marijuana today. However, in regards to the prohibition of alcohol, it is also beneficial to discuss the negative health consequences, which arose in response to the era. Because the production of alcohol was illegal, many bootleggers ran their own at-home distilleries, unmonitored by the government and no longer overseen by professionals working within the breweries. This meant that the product being distilled was extremely variable and prone to contamination of harmful substances. Another problematic consequence was the probability of a higher alcohol content. This, in addition to the fact that there was no law-enforcement regulating how much people consumed, led to many cases of blindness, paralysis, and even death. There were many cases of such within the population partaking in speakeasies and consuming illegally distilled alcohol, but the health of the nation overall seemingly benefitted. The Volstead Act, which acted as a manuscript for defining national prohibition and its limits concerning "intoxicating" beverages. It stated that any drinks containing more than .5% alcohol were banned. The majority of U.S. citizens obeyed the law and conformed to this new way of life. Within this population of Americans, statistics showed a dramatic decrease in death rates from cirrhosis and alcoholism. Alcoholic psychosis hospital admissions and drunkenness arrests also declined during this time (alcohol-related incarceration did not decline overall though, as we will soon discuss) (Blocker, 234). When the national prohibition of alcohol finally ceased in 1933 and the 21st amendment to the constitution was made, such health risks began to slowly incline. Today, statistics from the previous year show that approximately 80,000 deaths are attributable to excessive alcohol use each year in the United States. This makes alcohol use the third leading lifestyle-related cause of death for the nation (Center for Disease Control, 2012). This suggests that the prohibition of alcohol presumably worked from a health stand-point.
Marijuana, on the other hand, has not been around in the public eye and studied for nearly as long. It is also hard to compare the outcomes of legalization versus prohibition of marijuana because the United State's government has never allowed it. The data on adverse affects of marijuana are more extensive that the data on its effectiveness since clinical studies are hard to conduct for lack of funding and a tough regulatory environment such as the Food and Drug Administration and the Drug Enforcement Agency (Joy, Watson Jr., and Benson, 1999). Furthermore, studies of the long-term effects of marijuana are plausibly faulty and skewed by outside variables. For example, many individuals who smoke cannabis perhaps also do not exercise and may eat unhealthy foods. In this scenario, it is hard to indicate a cause and effect. It seems as if the use of marijuana poses less serious short and long-term effects in comparison to heavy consumption of alcohol. It is likely that health statistics pertaining to the use of marijuana would not fluctuate in any positive or negative way if legalization were to occur.
There are also serious indirect consequences of marijuana and alcohol use. One harmful aspect of heavy drinking is its association with sexually transmitted disease (STD's). Alcohol lowers inhibitions and it is hypothesized and supported by many studies to lead to unsafe sexual activity. One study published in the journal Addiction found that for every 0.1 milligram per milliliter increase of blood alcohol concentration (BAC), there was a 5% increase in the subject's likelihood of having unsafe sex (Rehm, 2012). Not only can alcohol consumption have negative consequences for the drinker, those around them can be in harms way and fall victim to drunkenness too. Aggressive actions are not uncommon during heavy consumption. Based on research done by the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD) alcohol plays a role in approximately 40% of all violent crimes committed. Of that 40%, 37% consists of sexual assaults, 15% are robberies, 27% are aggravated assaults, and 25% are minor reported assaults (2010). Even homicides have been linked to the use of alcohol. Related to aggravated assault and homicide brings up the all-too familiar topic of drunk driving. In 2009 the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported 45,230 fatalities caused by drinking and driving just here in the United States.
Indirect consequences of injury or death caused by the use of marijuana is mostly rooted in crimes synonymous with smuggling and distributing the crop (as will be further discussed in the next section). In terms of fatal car crashes, many studies show that having marijuana in your system and driving likely impairs your ability, however unlike alcohol, there is no compelling evidence available to report incidence.
Marijuana, on the other hand, has not been around in the public eye and studied for nearly as long. It is also hard to compare the outcomes of legalization versus prohibition of marijuana because the United State's government has never allowed it. The data on adverse affects of marijuana are more extensive that the data on its effectiveness since clinical studies are hard to conduct for lack of funding and a tough regulatory environment such as the Food and Drug Administration and the Drug Enforcement Agency (Joy, Watson Jr., and Benson, 1999). Furthermore, studies of the long-term effects of marijuana are plausibly faulty and skewed by outside variables. For example, many individuals who smoke cannabis perhaps also do not exercise and may eat unhealthy foods. In this scenario, it is hard to indicate a cause and effect. It seems as if the use of marijuana poses less serious short and long-term effects in comparison to heavy consumption of alcohol. It is likely that health statistics pertaining to the use of marijuana would not fluctuate in any positive or negative way if legalization were to occur.
There are also serious indirect consequences of marijuana and alcohol use. One harmful aspect of heavy drinking is its association with sexually transmitted disease (STD's). Alcohol lowers inhibitions and it is hypothesized and supported by many studies to lead to unsafe sexual activity. One study published in the journal Addiction found that for every 0.1 milligram per milliliter increase of blood alcohol concentration (BAC), there was a 5% increase in the subject's likelihood of having unsafe sex (Rehm, 2012). Not only can alcohol consumption have negative consequences for the drinker, those around them can be in harms way and fall victim to drunkenness too. Aggressive actions are not uncommon during heavy consumption. Based on research done by the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD) alcohol plays a role in approximately 40% of all violent crimes committed. Of that 40%, 37% consists of sexual assaults, 15% are robberies, 27% are aggravated assaults, and 25% are minor reported assaults (2010). Even homicides have been linked to the use of alcohol. Related to aggravated assault and homicide brings up the all-too familiar topic of drunk driving. In 2009 the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported 45,230 fatalities caused by drinking and driving just here in the United States.
Indirect consequences of injury or death caused by the use of marijuana is mostly rooted in crimes synonymous with smuggling and distributing the crop (as will be further discussed in the next section). In terms of fatal car crashes, many studies show that having marijuana in your system and driving likely impairs your ability, however unlike alcohol, there is no compelling evidence available to report incidence.