ABSTRACT

Marijuana is an ancient drug, recorded as long ago as 2700 B.C., and remains even at the present time a widely used recreational drug in the Middle East and the Orient. It comes from the plant Cannabis sativa, which is an annual growing wild or readily cultivated under conditions that will grow tomatoes. The amount of active resin, found mostly in the flowering tops and upper leaves, increases with maturation and good growing conditions and diminishes with length of storage. It is believed to be second to alcohol in the numbers of North American users. Its active principle is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), but this is very difficult to manufacture. It is supplied illicitly as “grass”, “pot”, or “Mary Jo” for smoking or ingestion, or as hashish for smoking. Pure THC is probably never available on the street, but when sold illicitly is in fact other substances such as PCP or LSD. It is used mostly by young people, with peak age of use in the late teens. Data obtained in 1988 from a survey of high school seniors indicated that 65% are regular users of alcohol, 14% are regular users of marijuana, with cigarette smoking at 30%.