Health+Effects+of+THC

**__Health Effects of Tetrahydrocannabinol__**  Tetrahydrocannabinol otherwise know as THC is the active ingredient in marijuana, which is a very controversial drug in the United States. Thirteen states have allowed it to be used for medical purposes, while the others do not agree with this legality. The reason for the controversy over this drug is due to the fact that marijuana does in fact have positive medical effects, while at the same time, many users of the drug abuse it and use it for other purposes.

The pharmacological process of how THC affects the human body involves the cannabinoid receptor sites, which are the CB1 and CB2 receptors. The CB1 receptors primarily affect the central nervous system, and the CB2 receptors primarily affect the cells of the immune system. THC acts as an agonist on both receptors. This means that THC has the ability to mimic the naturally occurring molecules in the body that naturally bind to the cannabinoid receptors. THC’s ability to bind to these receptor sites explains the fundamental reason for the health effects of THC (Pertwee).

There are a variety of positive medical purposes for THC. Studies have shown that THC has some analgesic abilities; however, the biochemical process behind the analgesic ability of the drug is not fully understood. THC has the ability to decrease nausea and increase appetite. This ability is beneficial to anorexia patients as well as patients suffering from cancer and AIDS. It also has been found to reduce the pressure in the eyes of glaucoma patients. Studies have shown that THC has positive effects on a variety of neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and Parkinson’s disease. Alzheimer’s studies on animals have revealed that THC has the ability to reduce the degradation of cognitive abilities by minimizing the inflammation in the brain caused by microglia cells (Ramirez). It has been found to alleviate the naturopathic pain that multiple sclerosis patient’s experience, and it can help prevent the neural degradation due to Parkinson’s disease (Fernández-ruiz). Studies have shown that patients suffering from Tourettes syndrome can lower their amount of nervous tics and spasms by taking THC. The effects of THC on cancerous tumors in mice have also been studied; the tests indicated that the tumors that were placed in the mice showed a noticeable amount of growth retardation when the mice were treated with THC (Munson).

The negative effects of THC are less than the positive effects. A study done by the University of Iowa using positron emission tomography found that THC can alter the normal memory functions of the brain. The study showed that the subjects using marijuana remembered specific parts of word sequences better than the subjects who did not use marijuana, while other parts of the word sequences were remembered better by non-marijuana users (Block). A study done by the University of Bristol found that chronic use of marijuana could increase the risk of psychotic illness later in life. The toxicity of THC is actually quite low. There are no records of someone actually dying from overdosing on THC.

THC is also known to cause altered vision, euphoria, relaxation, anxiety, and fatigue. Many people have abused this drug for recreational uses due to the euphoria they might experience. However, there could be an increase of legalization of THC in the near future due to the fact that the positive medical effects of THC outweigh the negative affects 