CUTTING DOWN ON THE GREEN

One blue-skied afternoon two years ago, I was driving my little
sister to a singing competition in downtown Ottawa. She remembered it
was April 20, or "4/20," and mourned over not being able to celebrate
with her friends on Parliament Hill. To mollify her disappointment,
and to satisfy my curiosity, I said we'd drive past.

I gaped as we passed hundreds of teens and adults lounging on the
sunny grass by the capital's green-roofed buildings. Navy blue police
figures dotted the crowd, but everyone looked peaceful and relaxed,
chatting in groups and walking across the lawn. I squinted and
couldn't see anyone smoking, but I knew in whose honour the party was
being thrown. It was for Mary Jane.

Who is this Mary Jane, you ask?

Her green face adorns the alternative Canadian flag. She hovered over
our fathers' long-haired plaid-shirted days. Illegal but sometimes
turned a blind eye by police, Mary Jane drifts through the streets of
Halifax, wafting down from windows, sneaking out of alleyways and
crashing on squishy second-hand couches in students' homes.

Weed, pot, hemp, dope, grass, cannabis, cheeba, herb and chronic are
synonyms for the drug which brings bleary-eyed Canadians across the
country together over joints, bongs and weed-spiked chocolate brownies.

Studies in the 1990s concluded smoking weed was more carcinogenic
than tobacco cigarettes, giving authorities (mothers included)
another reason to disdain the drug.

But the National Institute of Health's most wide-scale study showed
that smoking the drug had no cancer-causing consequences.

The 2006 study surveyed more than 1,000 moderate-to-heavy
weed-smokers. Heavy marijuana smokers who estimated a lifetime use of
more than 22,000 joints proved to be no more likely to end up with
respiratory cancers than people who never smoked marijuana.

Though marijuana does contain carcinogens (cancer-causing agents)
like those in tobacco cigarettes, these carcinogens were of no
consequence in weed.

Scientists speculate the tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, in weed
counteracts the smoke's cancer-causing properties by destroying aging cells.

Weed's anti-cancer benefits haven't been proven to be preventative,
so researchers urge people not to smoke marijuana to lessen chances
of developing cancer. Medical marijuana is used to combat tumors
already in existence, not to prevent cancer altogether.

But don't be fooled. Just because marijuana hasn't been proven to
cause cancer doesn't mean it's a harmless drug.

Increasing evidence supports strong correlations between marijuana
use and psychosis, especially during teenage years.

Psychosis is a psychological term to describe a loss of contact with
reality. Hallucinations and delusions characteristic in manic
depression and schizophrenia are examples of psychosis. As a
psychoactive drug, marijuana is still an object of study and debate
among scientists. It has both physiological and psychological
addictive properties. Especially when used as a regular sleeping aid
or relaxant, marijuana creates drug-dependency, causing withdrawal
symptoms of anxiety and restlessness.

Social enjoyment aside, I used to think potheads were just lazy types
of people who enjoyed being in a weed-daze more than I did. But as I
approach my mid-20s and people are starting to drop the drug, I'm
noticing those friends of mine who can't seem to quit.

Though stoners aren't more likely to get throat cancer than anyone
else, I worry about the mental disorders that will come from chronic
smoking. I worry about the silent battles so many weed-smokers face,
lying awake at night because they're not high. I worry about the
good, bright people I've seen sink into weed addictions that are
socially regarded as insubstantial and easy to stop.

Insomnia and psychosis are heavy consequences for such tiny joints.
Don't smoke them into your life. As with any treat - chocolate cake,
potato couch sessions, Internet porn - moderation is key.