Why alcohol destroy lives and cannabis is a safe alternative
Cannabis safer than alcohol. A 2015 study shows how governments of developing countries worldwide do not base drug laws on any type of science. The study
Comparative risk assessment of alcohol, tobacco, cannabis and other illicit drugs using the margin of exposure approach published in
Science Reports found cannabis has the lowest risk of death from its use. The study compared how dangerous recreational drugs were to the mortality and health of drug users. The drugs studied were diazepam, cocaine, tobacco, cannabis, alcohol, heroin, amphetamine, ecstasy, methadone and methamphetamine.
Surprisingly, alcohol was the greatest killer of them all, with nicotine coming in fourth out of the 10 drugs studied. Making cannabis a far safer option for recreational use than even alcohol, which is peddled on our televisions and supermarkets. Alcohol was found to be even more potentially dangerous than heroin.
The researchers say the study results indicate government polices should be more about prioritising and managing the risk of the legal substances nicotine and alcohol, rather than directed at cannabis use. Most world governments have more prohibitive restrictions for cannabis than there is for alcohol and nicotine, which shows cannabis legislation is not based on scientific evidence of any sort. The researchers found that governments should change their prohibitive approach to more of a regulatory one.
In Australia, and in other developed countries, cannabis is classed in the same schedule as heroin and LSD, where alcohol and tobacco are exempt. There is a good argument that tobacco and alcohol would be a schedule 9 drug along with cocaine and heroin in Australia were they to lose the emption status.
Cannabis, the dangerous myths
For decades, governments have misled people into believing cannabis is bad for you and highly addictive. Through bad press, the masses were led to believe it ruined the lives of many people and was the cause of people taking harder drugs. The media painted people who used cannabis as out of work losers who could not get their butts off the couch all day. This is what the masses are conditioned to believe, despite the scientific evidence cannabis contains medicinal properties. All the while they had no problem advocating the use of alcohol and nicotine. One would have to question why.
Cannabis is probably just as widely used as alcohol, yet it causes far less harm than alcohol addiction. Cannabis safer than alcohol by a landslide. Where cannabis is a naturally grown substance, alcohol is full of chemicals. Excessive alcohol use can trigger violent episodes, is more addictive, toxic and harmful physically. Excessive cannabis use will not trigger these sorts of responses from smoking it.
Alcohol causes more deaths than cannabis
In the US, more than 30,000 deaths are caused by alcohol and its effects. There are no statistics on the deaths caused by cannabis. This could be because using cannabis does not cause death in smokers. The 2015 study found the risk of dying from the use of alcohol was 114 times more than from using cannabis.
Similarly, people die from alcohol poisoning where there have been no deaths from overdosing on cannabis. The 2015 report found that drinking just 10 times more than you usually would could lead to alcohol poisoning, and death. The study found alcohol was the most toxic drug of all the drugs studied. US reports say there are over 1600 deaths caused by alcohol poisoning a year.
Alcohol health costs are higher than cannabis
According to the
Cannabis, Tobacco and Alcohol Use in Canada report 2009, the health costs for people who drink alcohol are eight times higher than those for a cannabis smoker. This equates to $165 for an alcohol user compared to $20 for cannabis smokers a year. Alcohol causes more health problems than cannabis, which, in turn, costs the community more from related issues.
Injury risks higher with alcohol consumption
Drinking alcohol increases the risk of injury of some sort. According to research,
Alcohol consumption greatly increases serious injury risk for heavy and moderate drinkers, 36% of people hospitalised for assault and 21% of the injuries were the result of drinking alcohol. Yet, there are few reports of cannabis smokers visiting hospital in an emergency. Cannabis does not tend to contribute to users taking risks or causing violence. While, drinking alcohol, is a big contributor to violence, self-harm and accidents.
How addictive is cannabis?
Numerous studies have concluded alcohol has the potential to be more addictive than cannabis. Millions of people have tried cannabis but few use it regularly. And, even fewer become dependent on cannabis.
Alcohol’s cancer link
It is well documented that alcohol use is linked with different types of cancer such as prostrate, pancreas, colon, liver, and lung cancers. On the contrary, there is no evidence that cannabis contributes to cancer at all. Concerns and scare tactics that smoking cannabis increases the risk of developing lung cancer were debunked. A 2006 study, by University of California’s Dr Donald Tashkin, found there is no relationship between cannabis and lung cancer. In fact, researchers found that cannabis users had a lower rate of lung cancer than those who did not use it. It’s better to toke than drink because cannabis safer than alcohol to reduce your risks for cancer.
Alcohol and brain damage
Have you ever been warned that cannabis will damage your brain cells? Turns out this is another myth. Researchers have found that cannabis actually has properties that protect brain cells from damage. In other words, smoking cannabis has the potential to protect against some of the health issues caused by alcohol.
Cannabis Safer Than Alcohol
Cannabis safer than alcohol. It really is a no brainer that cannabis is a much safer option for recreational use than even the legalised forms of alcohol. Question is, what do governments of developing countries fear from the humble cannabis plant? We’d love to hear your comments. And remember to check out our
best seeds for an alternative to Alcohol.