14. "Harmless drug" is not so harmless

By Tom O'Connell

A reader has asked me to write about a "harmless drug" that concerns her. She wonders if it's "harmless" in the same way cocaine used to be "harmless" when it first became popular. I promised her I'd do a little research on the subject.

The "harmless drug" under discussion is now being used as a prescription drug by some people, and is also used illegally by many others. My research shows that it has some extreme effects on human beings.

The 8th edition of Drugs & Nursing Implications reports that it is rapidly absorbed in the intestines and then distributed into many organs. It is also fat soluble, so it stays in the body tissues for days and days.

In the central nervous system, this "harmless drug" causes a psychological high, and obviously that is why people use it. However, it also causes drowsiness, dizziness, anxiety, confusion, euphoria, sensory or perceptual difficulties, impaired coordination, depression (7 percent of users}, irritability, headache, shaky movement and unsteady gait (4 percent of users), memory lapse, tingling sensations due to nerve damage, paranoia, feelings of becoming unreal, disorientation, noises in the ears, nightmares, speech difficulty, facial flush, and an increase in sweating.

In addition, it brings dry mouth, diarrhea, and bowel incontinence. It also may cause tachycardia (very rapid heartbeat), low blood pressure, high blood pressure, and fainting. Oh yes, it triggers muscular pain too.

The manual says, "The effects of the drug may persist an unpredictably long time." With increased dosage, the manual advises, "watch for disturbing psychiatric symptoms."

Withdrawal symptoms include irritability, insomnia, and restlessness. Then, arriving about 24 hours after withdrawal, are hot flashes, excessive sweating, persistent watery discharge from nose, watery diarrhea, hiccups, and anorexia. "Usually the syndrome is over in 96 hours," says the manual. That's four days of withdrawal symptoms.

The manual says patients using this drug should be cautioned to avoid driving or other potentially hazardous activities that require alertness and judgment; and the family should be alerted to the possibility of drug-induced mood changes.

Checking the Physicians' Desk Reference (PDR), I found similar information, along with a warning that the drug may worsen a person's mania, depression, or schizophrenia. Other reactions mentioned in the PDR are heart palpitations, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, abnormal thinking, conjunctivitis, and vision difficulties. In moderate doses, along with memory impairment, people who take this "harmless drug" may have difficulty passing urine, and experience a slowing of bowel function. In heavy doses, the manual notes that people may experience panic reactions and seizures. Also mentioned is the "extreme agitation" that affects some people.

The "harmless drug" we are talking about comes in prescription form as Marinol. It is also one of the world's most popular illicit drugs. Known by scientists as cannabis sativa, it is more commonly called marijuana. Despite its dangers, marijuana wears a mask of innocence, and is cloaked in the widespread seductive myth that it is "harmless."

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