Future research should examine process coding in BMIs that do discuss marijuana use to explore possible in-session processes that may be related to changes in marijuana use and can be targeted in future interventions. Similarly, although alcohol and marijuana use share similar predictors , they may differ in their mechanisms of change. For example, the underlying motives that drive these two behaviors may vary so changing one will not ultimately lead to changes in the other and existing BMIs may not be targeting or altering both. Third, the referral incident in this study may not have been severe enough to warrant an overall re-evaluation of substance use, as may have been the case for those who required a visit to the ED as a result of their alcohol use . Marijuana users may require a more focused intervention or a supplemental session that targets alternative substance free activities to facilitate changes in marijuana use . Finally, with growing trends in decriminalization and legalization of marijuana in the US, the perceived risk of marijuana has decreased among college students . Marijuana use may be more entrenched in the college social environment and more difficult to change without a targeted marijuana specific intervention. The results of this study should be interpreted within the context of its limitations. First, our study is restricted by our measure of marijuana use, which was limited to frequency and did not assess for marijuana-related consequences. Future studies may include assessments of quantity, days smoked, and consequences to get a better of understanding of the severity of participants’ marijuana use. Although daily marijuana use is on the rise,indoor plant table with almost 6% of college students reporting daily use , marijuana users in our study were using about 13.7 times in the past month.
This is fairly low compared to those seeking treatment for marijuana use or being seen in an emergency department. Findings may be different in those populations where marijuana use is greater. For example, Metrik et al. found that compared to lighter users, those who reported weekly marijuana use demonstrated a significant decrease in use following treatment. Furthermore, our measure of pBAC was derived from participants’ reported heaviest drinking event and may not be the best way to capture peak BAC levels. Additionally, the study sample was predominantly white which may limit our ability to generalize findings to other populations of interest. Finally, we relied on self-reported data collection that did not include corroborating measures.Despite these limitations, this study adds to the existing literature on the secondary effects of alcohol-focused BMIs. To our knowledge it is the first study to examine the influence of two different alcohol interventions on marijuana use in the context of stepped care. Furthermore, findings indicate that heavy drinking college students who also use marijuana may still benefit from alcohol treatment especially in reducing their alcohol related consequences. From a theoretical perspective, our results suggest that changing one behavior does not necessarily mean changes in another will occur, at least with respect to marijuana. However, future work should examine other health behaviors that might change as a result of reducing alcohol consequences. For example, it may be that increases in substance free activities like exercising, volunteering, or academic related behaviors occur alongside changes in alcohol-related behaviors.
Future research examining marijuana focused interventions of different intensity implemented in a stepped care approach may enhance our understanding of which interventions are most effective for college students with varying levels of involvement with marijuana.Marijuana has been criminalized since the late 1920’s due to a plan orchestrated by the Bureau of Narcotics , which aimed to restrict its importation, consumption, and sale. This focused effort resulted in the plant fading from the spotlight until the early 1960’s, when its popularity began to soar. Today, four states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational marijuana use and nineteen additional states have passed laws that permit the use of medical marijuana. Although permitted in some form in these twenty three states, it is still a violation of Federal law to possess marijuana, due to its classification as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act. Despite its classification, marijuana’s increasing popularity, combined with an increasing demand for legalization, calls for an examination of why the plant is illegal in the first place. The purpose of this paper is to examine the validity of these arguments, as well as provide possible solutions to the complex issue of legalization. Many anti-marijuana groups, such as American Society of Addiction Medicine , National Association of Drug Court Professionals , Citizens Against Legalizing Marijuana , Smart Approaches to Marijuana , Parents Opposed to Pot , and National Families in Action , and many more, argue that the legalization of recreational marijuana will lead to easier access and increased use among minors. A study published in October 2014 in the Journal of Adolescent health found that marijuana use does not increase. The study was conducted by Choo, Benz, Zaller, Warren, Rising, and McConnel who looked at a population sample of 11,703,100 students between 1991 and 2011; the students were varying ages, but they all resided in states that had medical marijuana legalization laws.
They found past-month marijuana consumption was common , but there was no significant statistical differences in use before and after marijuana policy changes for any state. Choo et. al. also did not find any overall increased probability of marijuana consumption related to the policy change in the regression analysis. Even though this study examines medical marijuana,hydroponic vertical farming the concern of minors having access to the plant is very limited. In a state where getting a medical marijuana card is fairly easy for anyone twenty-one and older, minors will turn to previous connections for the drug instead of asking from older siblings, relatives, etc. The real concern comes from the mentality among youth that marijuana is a safe drug to consume, which is not the case for developing minds . A study conducted by Loyola Medicine says that early use can lead to lifelong addiction and damaging developmental changes such as impaired thinking, increased likelihood of dropping out of school, and poor educational outcomes . Whether it is medical or recreational marijuana, there is a solution to youth consumption. Educational talks about the impact of marijuana on developing brains need to be implemented as a result of legalizing recreational marijuana. Like sex education and domestic violence, teaching minors about the consequences of marijuana can have a profound effect. Relating sex education in schools and marijuana prohibition, a study conducted by Kathrin F. StangerHall and David W. Hall found states with abstinence- only programs in public schools have drastically more teenage pregnancy and birth rates than schools with more comprehensive sex education programs. Like marijuana prohibition, minors are more likely to engage in risky behavior the less they are educated about said behavior. The power of education can show middle and high-schoolers the repercussions of marijuana consumption at an early age which can deter the behavior. Another concern expressed by anti-marijuana groups is the notion that crime will increase. This a very reasonable concern, especially with the Mexican drug cartels committing horrible acts as a result of the drug war. However, a recent study conducted by Morris, TenEyck, Barnes, and Kovandzic found crime was not exacerbated by the passing of medical marijuana laws in Part I offenses such as rape, homicide, robbery, burglary, assault, auto theft, and larceny. Morris et. al. did find the laws may be correlated with reductions in assault and homicide rates. Additionally, Smith, Homish, Collins, Giovino, White, and Leonard at University of Buffalo sampled 634 couples in their first nine years of marriage who consumed marijuana. They found of the 634 couples tested, the more the couple smoked marijuana, the less likely they were to commit domestic violence acts . The researchers also found the study supports the notion that marijuana does not increase aggressive conflict and it may actually decrease the instances .
Marijuana commonly “mellows out” its users where violent acts are not carried out; this would indicate the main source of crime is a direct result of drug trafficking, not consumption. However, the crimes come from acquiring the drug and its suppliers. A main source of marijuana comes from Mexico as a result of the plant’s ban and criminalization in the early 1900’s; the Mexican drug cartels used existing trade routes for cocaine and heroin throughout the United States to start smuggling marijuana . RAND, a nonprofit organization for research and analysis for US armed forces, calculated national estimates of illegal market sizes for four illicit drugs , methamphetamine, marijuana, and heroin between 2000 and 2010. Of the $100 billion total drug estimate, $40.6 billion is from marijuana and those who consume it daily/near daily make up 80% of total expenditures This illegal market can be reduced by 41% due to marijuana legalization, and we can decrease the amount of nonviolent drug charges by 46% . With recreational marijuana legalized in just four states, evidence of this change is already appearing . The U.S. Border Patrol has been noticing a steady decline in marijuana seizures, from 2.5 million pounds in 2011 to 1.9 million pounds in 2014. Mexico’s army has seen a drastic decline in marijuana confiscation, dropping 34% compared to the previous year . Some may attribute to law enforcement, but evidence is showing it is due to the five U.S. states that legalized recreational marijuana. The industry grew 74% in 2014 to $2.7 with projections of reaching $4 billion by 2016, which means less income for the Mexican cartel to acquire guns, assassins, and bribe the police. Along with legalization, Mexico is seeing a decrease in crime, specifically homicides; homicides were at a high in 2011 with 23,000 murders reported, last year, there were 15,649 reported murders . Even though this is the tip of the iceberg, marijuana reform is already affecting the black market and Mexico just after three years of recreational legalization. If marijuana is federally legalized, not only will crime rates decrease, but the amount of money spent and generated on its illegal demand with be reduced drastically. The last argument for keeping marijuana illegal is its health risks and concerns. Most of the experiments concern minors who will not be able to buy recreational marijuana until they are twenty-one. These findings are also inconsistent because of other third variables unaccounted for such as socioeconomic status, mental health, and parental relationships; but it should not be ignored that there is serious health effects for consumption in youth. When directed to individuals who are twenty-one and older, although limited, the findings point to possible benefits of marijuana consumption in some diseases. Haj-Dahmane and Shen of University of Buffalo found there may be actual medical marijuana use for treating depression. They explained chronic stress reduces the production of endocannabinoids in the brain which is not only a chemical produced by the brain naturally, but an active ingredient in marijuana . However, the use was only studied in animal models and the next step is to see if it restores normal behaviors in animal models without leading to drug dependence. Another way to explore the treatment of depression and marijuana use is to conduct a longitudinal study focusing on age of use onset, consumption rates, duration of use, and level of depression. A longitudinal study could give a wider scope on long-term effects of marijuana and depression. Marijuana also shows potential in treating autoimmune diseases and anxiety reduction in several studies, however, a couple studies found that it may not be as effective in treating some neurological diseases . An interesting study conducted by Jouanjus, LapeyreMestre and Micallef identified 35 cases of vascular and cardiovascular conditions related to brain, heart, and limbs. They found marijuana use resulted in heart-related complications, and even death, where the sample was an average of 34.3 year old males and had marijuana-related cardiovascular complications . However, this study has some limitations to it; cannabis exposure ranged from actual , recent , and regular/daily use — a total of 30 cases— and the duration of use was only available in five cases that ranged from two to more than 25 years.