A Harmful High

Study
With one twenty-fifth of the United States condoning the recreational use of marijuana, the conversation has already begun about the drug's future in this country. Marijuana has been illegal nation wide for quite some time, and the conservative point of view would be to stand by the idea that it will serve no real purpose to legalize "another drug." The opposing outlook looks at marijuana as a seemingly "harmless" drug. While it is true there has never been a reported death directly related to over consumption of marijuana, Medical News Today learned some interesting facts. An epidemiological study by Dr. Didier Jutras-Aswad of the University of Montreal and Dr. Yasmin Hurd of Mount Sinai was conducted to investigate correlations between the effects the drug had on brain chemistry and the genetic and environmental influences, focusing on adolescent users. The trends showed that cannabis use improved one's chances of developing an addiction to more powerful drugs as well as developing a psychotic illness. While these findings themselves were not surprising, the study's purpose was to narrow down possible shared risk factors between victimized users. Adolescent users with brains still in growth and with specific genetic risk factors had the highest vulnerability for acquiring these addictive behaviors and psychosis. A study done further to address the brain chemistry aspect showed that cannabis receptors are located in the areas of the brain that are responsible for learning, motivation, rewarding, habit formation, and motor ability. Again, the purpose was to look past those results and conclude that these are the same areas in the brain that undergo rapid growth through adolescence. This is telling as to why the teenage brain is much more at risk for the negative effects of cannabis use.

Reflection
All drugs (prescription, non prescription) come with side effects. There is no perfect drug.  Advanced medical companies that engineer these substances for years and years can't even reach the point of developing a perfect drug with no possible negative backlash. To advocate that cannabis is a "harmless" drug is simply not true. It may not be as harmful as the group of extreme narcotics, but the term "harmless" is almost never reached in the world of medical treatment/chemical drug use. Cannabis use, however, has never been used to a point of overdose and its benefits on particular medical conditions are well documented. With all that being said, this study stresses that there is a demographic that is very vulnerable to the harm cannabis causes. And this very vulnerable demographic happens to be a demographic that is one of the most frequent cannabis users: teenagers.
As for using the term "gateway drug," I hesitate. A lot of other factors come into play. It really depends on the individual's genetic influence, specifically the formation and function of the certain cannabis receptors and THC processing. Additionally, the individual's character type comes into play, whether the user is an impulsive risk taker exposed at an early age or maybe a dependent trend follower. It also depends on the strength and effectiveness of the cannabis used, meaning a stronger form may cause more damage. A combination of all these factors certainly heightens this "gateway" effect and may result in future addictive behaviors, but it really comes down each specific case (as it normally does in the field of psychology). For some, it will be a gateway, for others, not so much.
I emphatically agree with this article's concluding point, that being these findings are not intended to fuel the debate surrounding marijuana use, but to help identify those users who are most subject to neurological damage. 

"Identifying these vulnerable adolescents, including through genetic or psychological screening, may be critical for prevention and early intervention of addiction and psychiatric disorders related to cannabis use." -Professor Didier Jutras-Aswad

-Ryan Scanlon

Works Referenced:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/265289.php