The Dope Debate

I agree that marijuana should be legalised for medical purposes, and that
penalties for possession are needlessly harsh (Editorial, This Week and
Special Report, 21 February). But I am not convinced by the arguments for
removing all barriers to its recreational use. Almost invariably, these
arguments largely consist of efforts to prove that alcohol and tobacco are
worse.

A familiar argument for legalising marijuana is that legalisation would
enable us to regulate it. But this ignores our long experience with alcohol
and tobacco. If this proves anything, it proves that making something legal
gives no assurance that we can effectively regulate it.

Alcohol and tobacco have both been legal for centuries, but we have
conspicuously failed to prevent their abuse. Despite all legal prohibitions
and restrictions, drunk drivers kill and injure thousands of people every
year, and smokers persist in slowly killing themselves and damaging the
health of others. Meanwhile, despite all efforts at regulation, underage
drinking and smoking are apparently increasing.

I wonder, moreover, about the effort to discount findings unfavourable to
marijuana. It is suggested, for example, that some of its apparent ill
effects might not be caused by marijuana at all, but might be traceable
instead to some predisposition in the user. Reasonable enough---but why not
give alcohol the benefit of similar doubts? It is widely accepted that some
individuals are more inclined than others to abuse alcohol and become
alcoholics. And why should it surprise us if irresponsible drivers are also
irresponsible drinkers?

On the other hand, nowhere in your special issue on marijuana is there any
mention of the positive health benefits attributed to alcohol by recent
studies. These suggest that the moderate use of alcohol could help millions
of people by making them less prone to strokes and heart disease. I have
yet to hear of any such evidence with regard to marijuana.

Philip Cooper, Torquay, Devon

Your report on cannabis made interesting reading, as yet another official
report failed to find evidence of serious harm or risk to public health
from cannabis use.

However, I note that many of the findings may be more appropriate for the
US, where herbal cannabis is normally smoked "neat"---without tobacco. In
Britain, cannabis resin is the dominant form, representing approximately 70
per cent of the œ3 billion to œ5 billion annual market, and is normally
smoked with tobacco.

According to our surveys, many users smoke around 6 joints a day, and get
through between 1/8 ounce (3-5 grams) and 1/4 ounce (7 grams) per week,
with some heavy users smoking up to 1/4 ounce per day.

Our latest survey results suggest consumption of indoor-grown,
higher-potency hybrids ("skunk", for example) have nearly doubled in the
past three years, with growers able to indulge heavier levels of use
without having to pay. By comparison, Donald Tashkin's smokers got through
three "neat" joints per day, representing a similar weight of cannabis to
typical British users, but without the tobacco.

The British Medical Association report on therapeutic uses of cannabis
quoted particular studies from the US from 1982, which involved low-potency
marijuana without tobacco, results that may not be applicable to
higher-potency hybrids or to cannabis resin. The smoking of unfiltered
tobacco joints must increase the cancer risk, and cannabis smokers in
Britain may be lulled into a false sense of security by these US studies.

There is an urgent need for research into the composition of smoke from
tobacco and cannabis or cannabis resin joints, particularly of "skunk" and
similar types of cannabis.

Cannabis has often been accused, falsely, of leading to harder drugs such
as heroin and cocaine. It may instead be found to lead to the "hardest"
drug of all, nicotine.

In the light of increased government pressure on tobacco companies and the
decline in the number of cigarette smokers, a significant number of
recruits from cannabis smokers may provide a financial lifeline for the
tobacco companies.

Matthew Atha, Independent Drug Monitoring Unit, Wigan

The case for decriminalising cannabis seems to grow stronger with every
leaked report. However, the WHO seems to have overlooked an important side
effect.

The photograph on the top right of the contents page (21 February) is clear
evidence that cannabis affects the brain to the extent that menus appear
legible even when they are upside down. Either that or the young man in the
photograph has already decided that he wants a Mars bar, a Galaxy and three
packets of cheese and onion crisps. Oh, and ten Silk Cut and a packet of
Rizlas please.

Andrew Ainsworth, University of Hull