cannabisnews.com: Researchers Say Pot Not Always Path To Drugs










  Researchers Say Pot Not Always Path To Drugs

Posted by CN Staff on December 05, 2006 at 08:03:51 PT
By Anita Srikameswaran, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 
Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette  

USA -- Contrary to popular belief, smoking marijuana need not be a steppingstone between using alcohol and tobacco and experimenting with illegal drugs such as cocaine and heroin.Researchers led by Ralph E. Tarter, a professor at the University of Pittsburgh's School of Pharmacy, found that nearly a quarter of the young men they studied used marijuana before they began drinking or smoking cigarettes.
It's the reverse of what's known as the "gateway hypothesis," in which drug use is thought to progress from alcohol and tobacco to marijuana to hard drugs.The researchers determined also that the likelihood of developing a substance abuse problem was similar in youngsters who followed the traditional gateway drug use pattern and those who followed the reverse pattern. "This is actually quite novel, this idea," Dr. Tarter said. "It runs counter to about six decades of current drug policy in the country, where we believe that if we can't stop kids from using marijuana, then they're going to go on and become addicts to hard drugs."But the data doesn't support that contention, he noted. The findings were published in this month's American Journal of Psychiatry.Marijuana was the first drug used by a 26-year-old man from Beaver County who is undergoing addiction treatment at Gateway Rehabilitation Center. He was 15 the first time he tried it, on a Saturday with a group of friends.At their suggestion, he began smoking cigarettes when he started using marijuana."That's how they taught me how to hold in the smoke of the weed, because cigarette smoke is stronger than marijuana smoke," he explained.Smoking pot soon became a weekend thing.Then, "I started smoking in the morning before I would go to school," he recalled. "Sometimes I would sneak away and go smoke during lunch. Then after school I would smoke."Eventually, he was using marijuana "all day, every day," he said. If he didn't smoke, he'd get headaches and have problems sleeping. Two years ago, a friend introduced him to snorting cocaine, and he began using that in addition to smoking pot.Now married and a father, he realized he was spending all his money on drugs, instead of his family. So he checked himself into rehab in the hope of overcoming his addictions.In Dr. Tarter's study, which was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, researchers monitored more than 200 young men at intervals from the time they were 10 to 12 years of age until they were 22. They fell into one of three groups: those who used only alcohol or tobacco; those who started with alcohol and tobacco and then used marijuana; and those who used marijuana prior to using alcohol and tobacco.Among those who used marijuana, nearly a quarter followed the reverse of the gateway pattern. They tended to have less parental supervision and to live in neighborhoods with poor physical environments where illegal drugs were more available.In general, the marijuana-users were more behaviorally deviant, less involved with school and had friends their parents didn't like, the researchers found."That all makes sense to me," said the Gateway Rehab Center patient. "If I had stayed with the crowd I grew up with, I don't think I'd have had this problem. I started to hang with the wrong crowd."Some of his friends have used harder drugs, such as cocaine, while others used marijuana now and then, but never progressed further into addiction, he said.It was easier to obtain marijuana than alcohol or cigarettes as a teenager, he added."You always had to show a form of ID to get those," he said. "But I could always go to the person who was selling the weed to get it, and they wouldn't ask for ID. It was never hard to get for me."Gateway's medical director, Dr. Neil Capretto, said a few patients have told him that the first drug they used was heroin, which is "very available now in many neighborhoods, whether it be inner-city Pittsburgh or upper-middle-class suburbs."He praised the Pitt study, saying "it really shows the complex nature of addiction. What they're showing here is what we've been seeing in practice for years."Most people who experiment with marijuana do not go on to use harder drugs, Dr. Capretto said.Still, "the vast majority of people who we see who do cocaine or heroin have done marijuana in the past, or are likely to do it at some time in the future," he noted. But "if we could push a button and all the marijuana would go away, by no means will that stop the drug problem in this country."Dr. Capretto described the mother of a patient who was relieved that, unlike her other son who was addicted to heroin, her younger boy's dropping grades and mood changes were due to marijuana use."I said, 'That's not necessarily good news,' " he recounted. "Something's still wrong. Whether it be a young person on alcohol, tobacco or marijuana, [even] if that's all they ever do, that's a problem right there."According to Dr. Tarter, drug use prevention messages should minimize "slippery slope" scare tactics and emphasize healthy living. Interventions to foster values and attitudes that resist illegal behaviors and to strengthen parenting skills could be helpful.It's possible to identify children who are at high risk for drug use years before they begin experimenting, Dr. Tarter said."Nothing is carved in stone, especially at this age," he said. "But the longer you wait, the harder it is to change." Complete Title: Researchers Say Smoking Pot Not Always Path to Hard Drug UseSource: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (PA)Author: Anita Srikameswaran, Pittsburgh Post-GazettePublished: Tuesday, December 05, 2006Copyright: 2006 PG PublishingContact: letters post-gazette.comWebsite: http://www.post-gazette.com/Related Article: No 'Smoking' Gun http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread22430.shtmlCannabisNews -- Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml 

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Comment #34 posted by whig on December 05, 2006 at 22:43:20 PT
Truth
I love San Francisco and the East Bay, can't speak for the rest of the state but we have a clear political mandate for at least medical cannabis and I am okay with that as a model that offers a moderate and acceptable choice to the rest of the nation and world. I will also support efforts towards ending cannabis prohibition altogether, but here at least there is a place that I can peacefully lay my head at night and know that I can freely consume (if discreetly) the sacrament and medicine that allows body and soul to mend and grow. I can speak openly and honestly, without fear of persecution for the fact that I use cannabis almost every day. (I took a day off Sunday and that may become my weekly second Sabbath to give God a day of rest.) And I'm babbling. So what?Yes, I love it out here.
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Comment #33 posted by Truth on December 05, 2006 at 22:26:39 PT
whig
sounds like you're lovin' California....
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Comment #32 posted by whig on December 05, 2006 at 21:40:03 PT
Max
I won't go into too much detail here, but I believe Nancy Pelosi is doing the right thing so far. I don't believe in playing your strong card first. It looks bad, and then you're in a weaker position to defend the rest of your hand.John Conyers is the one to watch. He's being very quiet lately, and I find that fascinating. You probably won't hear him make a peep until the new Congress is seated. He chairs Judiciary, he is the point man on the impeachment investigation that will not be named as such until articles are presented.We're on the same page, but we have different lines to read. Are you down? This here strain is the Romulan, and I tell you so if you have some of that kine to match waves. As the Beach Boys said, catch a wave and you're sitting on top of the world.
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Comment #31 posted by whig on December 05, 2006 at 21:26:44 PT
gw 
How do you feel living in Al'Obama?Do you know his middle name is Hussein? The right wing is already starting in on him.Will you defend?
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Comment #30 posted by whig on December 05, 2006 at 21:25:04 PT
gw 
I have wondered about Obama becoming president.I may buy his book as a gift for my own father, a formerly staunch Republican who I am sure voted for no Republicans this year.
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Comment #29 posted by FoM on December 05, 2006 at 17:33:41 PT
Just a Comment
One thing we haven't had in a long time is hope in those who become our leaders. I want to believe that Senator Obama is a real person who can learn to understand. I don't want to act like a kill it before it grows philosophy. Republicans and right minded people will look under every rock to try to bring Senator Obama down and I just want to give him a chance. Lord knows I don't want to see the right win in 08. I'll give up then.
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Comment #28 posted by goneposthole on December 05, 2006 at 17:25:23 PT
At least O'Bama exhaled
Bill Clinton didn't exhale and now he looks like a hot air balloon, all puffed up like a puffed wheat times about two million. Bill Clinton is full of hot air. He looks like it, anyways. Good buddies with the Bush's and all trying to raise a buck or two for charities all over the planet. What a political hack he's become. Newt Gingrich looks like a compassionate person next to Billy "I'll take three Big Macs, por favor" Clinton. Strange bedfellows, those sleazeball politicians.O'Bama will have a 'window of deniability,' that's for sure.If I could, I'd roll a about a forty dollar reefer, but I can't, so I won't.
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Comment #27 posted by FoM on December 05, 2006 at 17:16:34 PT
Max Flowers
He just talked about his use of marijuana in the past on Leno. Here's the clip.http://youtube.com/watch?v=Y2ff4vl0eLM
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Comment #26 posted by Max Flowers on December 05, 2006 at 17:02:26 PT
Obama quote
Hey guys, did you note that Obama wrote that ten years ago? Sorry to be pessimistic, but now that he is ascending within the Washington circle, I fully expect him to back away from that statement. I'm just glad that it is a written, documented quote, because at least it documents him---undeniably a sharp, articulate man---admitting that he got high when younger. He will have a hard time backing away from it without looking contrived, but nevertheless that's what I fully expect him to do.If he doesn't back away from it, it will be a big improvement over Bill "I didn't inhale" Clinton, but I will still expect him to toe the line regarding the drug war and everything related. It would be nice if I turn out to be wrong on this, but after getting stabbed by Nancy "impeachment is off the table" Pelosi, I expect the worst these days...  
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Comment #25 posted by global_warming on December 05, 2006 at 16:42:25 PT
did you hear about
Eternity?As I walk through this valleyI know that every rock and promiseIs rocking through my soul
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Comment #24 posted by global_warming on December 05, 2006 at 16:20:30 PT
while the bread is baking
there is some time to discussthe newsdid you hear about some poor women who was arrested and placed in jaildid you hear about some guy who was arrestedfor having marijuanahe was arrested and placed in jail
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Comment #23 posted by global_warming on December 05, 2006 at 16:05:12 PT
hey whig
I Love You, have a present for you whiggerhave you ever wondered about some black slave sonbecoming president of these free states, inthese free us'a?
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Comment #22 posted by Toker00 on December 05, 2006 at 15:55:19 PT
Well, whig,
I may be wrong, but I thought that Mari was Spanish slang for Mary and Juana was Spanish slang for Jane. Since Christ is Prince of Peace, I wasn't leaving Him out, either.Toke. 
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Comment #21 posted by global_warming on December 05, 2006 at 15:50:35 PT
this the one
this is the place and correct timein this electionwe; those peoplesolemnly declare with one voiceEverlasting Freedom
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Comment #20 posted by FoM on December 05, 2006 at 15:03:13 PT
Paul
Yes his words need to be seen. Here's a link to a video of a song I really get involved and sing along when I listen to it.Looking For a Leader by Neil YoungMaybe it's Obama but he says that he's too young.http://www.neilyoung.com/lwwtoday/lwwvideos/lookinforaleader_wm.html
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Comment #19 posted by The GCW on December 05, 2006 at 14:41:24 PT
Illinois
Just outside of Chicago is a little place called Illinois.
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Comment #18 posted by paulpeterson on December 05, 2006 at 14:19:43 PT
FoM
I think Obama's words need to be seen here, right now:
(nuff said)Barack Obama on Drugs 
Democratic Jr Senator (IL); previously State Senator Understand why youngsters want to use drugs 
Junkie. That's where I'd been headed: the final, fatal role of the young would-be black man. Except the highs hadn't been about me trying to prove what a down brother I was. Not by then, anyway. I got high for just the opposite effect, something that could push questions of who I was out of my mind, something that could flatten out the landscape of my heart, blur the edges of my memory. I had discovered that it didn't make any difference whether you smoked reefer in the white classmate's sparkling new van, or in the dorm room of some brother you'd met down at the gym, or on the beach with a couple of Hawaiian kids who had dropped out of school and now spent most of their time looking for an excuse to brawl. You might just be bored, or alone. Everybody was welcome into the club of disaffection. And if the high didn't solve whatever it was that was getting you down, it could at least help you laugh at the world's ongoing folly and see through all the hypocrisy and bullshit and cheap moralism. 
Source: Dreams from My Father, by Barack Obama, p. 87 Aug 1, 1996
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Comment #17 posted by paulpeterson on December 05, 2006 at 14:12:45 PT
whig
Thanks for posting that article about the deathhouse. A friend emailed that to me yesterday. Sadly, of course, the endemic loss of respect for human life is not contained in that one small triangle of death (Mexican narcos, local lawies & the DEAth squads). This is so rampant that it makes the potential "conspiracy" theory about 911 seem like business as usual.From my research, both alcoholism & hard stimulant abuse take a horrible toll on the areas of the brain responsible for emotional empathy and such-Ironically, of course, one such region, the ventral areas (top of the head, at the rear of the frontal lobes) are given an increase in blood flow by U NO WAT (Kaneh Bosm), per U of Iowa researchers I spoke to in 2001.I would not want to have George Bush as my savior-or to rely on him to rescue me from a burning building or a burning nation. He has allowed the almighty dollar to take away his humanity, big time. And every narco-administrator he pays the salary of is pledged to support his ideals, or lack thereof.That, in summary, is why this latest smoking gun article about how marijuana is NOT the gateway drug will not change this heinous drug war. The more benign & the more medically beneficial marijuana is found to be, the worse the drug companies will be lobbying to stop this magic herb from taking away their ill-gotten pharma bucks.The only thing that will cause change is bankrupcy of the US treasury and wholesale defections from anti-ism.The "fact" that we now are in a civil war in Iraq, with more on the way, thanks to Bush's "bring em on" rhetoric, is the only hope to change. It got many rabid howling Republican hawks out of office, didn't it?The last time we had a vote in congress, I think MM got 155 votes. Add another 30 to that total and we are up to 185 or so. That should shake some other cliff-hangers off the ceiling, and back down to earth. Who knows, we may have a close vote in congress after all this year.And now that Dick Durbin, from Illinois, has sponsored a Senate version, we may just get a meaningful vote there also. Will Bush veto? Of course he will-he owns large chunks of Eli Lilly (they are rerolling Cesamet right now through FDA approval). But once Lebanon & Israel join the civil war territory, and impeachment territory gets hotter and hotter, I don't care about his position any more.Go ahead, kill more innocent people and imprison another 2.2 million people in your jails-then more moms and dads will revolt at this prison state. That is what it will take to shake these people out of the tall grass.PAUL PETERSON
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Comment #16 posted by goneposthole on December 05, 2006 at 13:42:14 PT
Hide nor Hair
darn keyboards
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Comment #15 posted by goneposthole on December 05, 2006 at 13:38:49 PT
That's good
"I started smoking in the morning before I would go to school"A woman school teacher friend of mine smoked everyday before she headed off to school. She is a good school instructor.A hospital administrator that I know would smoke every morning at 5:00 AM before breakfast.Gotta make it through the day some how.George Bush needs his head examined. He can't make hide no hair of anything.
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on December 05, 2006 at 13:07:40 PT
Sinsemilla Jones 
Me too!
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Comment #13 posted by Sinsemilla Jones on December 05, 2006 at 13:05:41 PT
We might just have a real candidate folks...
"...And if the high didn't solve whatever it was that was getting you down, it could at least help you laugh at the world's ongoing folly and see through all the hypocrisy and bullshit and cheap moralism."- Obama on "reefer"If he runs towards that statement and not away from it, and for some strange hopeful reason I think he will, he's extremely likely to get my vote.
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on December 05, 2006 at 11:55:37 PT
museman
Check out what Senator Obama said about drugs. It seems honest to me in many respects.PS: Maybe Senator Clinton could be nominated but I think she is too nice to Republicans for my liking. Maybe she could be Obama's Vice President. No I don't think she would be interested in that ticket.http://www.ontheissues.org/2008/Barack_Obama_Drugs.htm
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Comment #11 posted by museman on December 05, 2006 at 11:42:43 PT
FoM
Clinton and Obama, maybe a tiny baby step in a decent direction, but they cannot make any strides of any import while this system continues with it's values and status quo priorities.Just once I'd like to see someone who was not born with a silver spoon in their mouth run for an important political position
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Comment #10 posted by FoM on December 05, 2006 at 10:59:48 PT
museman
Here's a little bit about Senator Obama.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barack_Obama
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Comment #9 posted by FoM on December 05, 2006 at 10:46:56 PT
museman
No sir he is a Democrat from a blue blue state called Illinois! Cool!
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Comment #8 posted by museman on December 05, 2006 at 10:40:29 PT
FoM
Isn't Obama a republican?
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on December 05, 2006 at 10:15:42 PT
 museman 
I know you are talking to Sam but I believe we are headed towards a better way. It is only a feeling but it's there inside me. I really like what Senator Obama has to say. I could listen to him talk for a long time. He admits that he inhaled because that was the purpose. He reminds me a lot of JFK but he doesn't have a lot of baggage fortunately. Maybe I will live to see the day when we have a black President. That would do my heart good.
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Comment #6 posted by whig on December 05, 2006 at 10:11:38 PT
The House of Death
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/world/story/0,,1962643,00.html
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Comment #5 posted by museman on December 05, 2006 at 10:08:03 PT
Sam
You know what this country needs, is a movement to re-educate the adult population in historical facts, and common sense. A true university dedicated to actual humanitarian truth and reform.People are much more capable of realizing the truth about their illegal, and immmoral government now. The common, educated American has no illusions about the guilt or innocence of our power elite.We need more community-run academies, independant of federal funded programs to educate the populace in the dire situations confronting the earth, and the total irresponsibility of the powers to deal with it. The people need to know that they have as much legal power as the state, or the cop on the street, they need to know how to use it properly and well.If enough people realized the simple fact that this system can be replaced with a better one, that we do not need emporers to rule the earth, and bring other nations 'into line', then change could come without revolution or war.If enough people just stood up one day and said "no more" the foundation of their power would be taken away, and we could begin to discuss a viable alternative.So it seems to me that information exchange (the internet has surely been a great boon) and reality education is the only real way to end the madness.
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Comment #4 posted by Sam Adams on December 05, 2006 at 09:16:13 PT

headline
Gotta love the headline, "pot" is not a drug and doesn't lead to drugs! Finally.Still, all this talk of illegal drugs and the wrong crowd. Maybe they should tell all the worried parents that all illegal drugs combined kill about 20,000 people per year, and alcohol kills 150,000 per year.Risk management is a fascinating field. For instance, look at autism. Autism rates are doubling nearly every 10 years. Yet how much do you hear about that vs. school shootings, or terrorism, or "drugs".  Autism is likely due to environmental contamination, like the unsafe levels of mercury in our water and food supply.Yet the government just extended the "permit to pollute" rules for 50 year old Midwestern power plants. Most of the freshwater fish and much of the salt water fish in the world is now unsafe to eat.  It will make you dumber and slower, or turn your kids into damaged goods, ruining their lives and the rest of yours.I guess a lot of parents are more worried about what their neighbors will think of them and their status if their kids starts coming home with body piercings and dark clothing. 
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Comment #3 posted by whig on December 05, 2006 at 08:57:38 PT

Toker00
Why Mari? Just to change from Merry and avoid the implications of Mary?Just wondering, and not in disagreement, just to see how we should develop this in a way that can be understood and passed on.Have a Mary's Peacemas:)
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on December 05, 2006 at 08:51:58 PT

North Dakota Farmers May Grow Hemp Soon
December 5, 2006North Dakota is high on hemp. Beginning January first, farmers may start applying for state licenses to grow industrial hemp. But there's a catch, and it's a really big one. The federal government makes no distinction between hemp and marijuana. Legally, growing hemp is the same as growing pot. State Agriculture Commissioner Roger Johnson says they hope to persuade the feds to allow hemp as a crop. He says hemp can be used in everything from rope to cosmetics. State officials note growing hemp is legal just a few miles to the north, in Canada. Copyright 2006 by The Associated Presshttp://www.wtkr.com/Global/story.asp?S=5769606

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Comment #1 posted by Toker00 on December 05, 2006 at 08:48:11 PT

Take THAT, Prohibians!
This has got to be the Final Nail In The Coffin for THE GATEWAY THEORY.Mari Peacemas and Hippie New Year! END CANNABIS PROHIBITION NOW!
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