Health - A question about cannabis use frequency, quantity and health

[Joe-(5-HTP)]

Swim knows that cannabis can have negative side effects on the brain if used too much. Swim, therefore, limits himself to using once a month. When swim does use, however, he totally destroys himself to the point where it feels as intense as an acid trip and swim is often sick and has panic/anxiety attacks (There are positives to the trip which outweigh these negatives).

To lessen the risk of brain damage for drugs like alcohol, swim knows that it is better to drink smaller amounts frequently than to drink large amounts infrequently.

swim's question is this: is cannabis the same? What method of use would be the least risky or damaging to swim's health: taking cannabis infrequently but in large amounts, or taking it more frequently but in smaller amounts.

Swim would also be interested to hear of swiy's experiences with either of these two methods, or indeed an alternative, and how you feel it affected swiy in the long term.

[Nature Boy]

Cannabis isn't the same as alcohol in terms of brain damage risk so the usage comparison isn't accurate. As far as general health is concerned, it's hard to tell. I would imagine infrequent but heavy use would put some temporary strain on the lungs whereas regular but moderate use avoids this. If one were to use a vaporizer, this risk is by-passed nearly entirely.

As for infrequent but panic-causing use, psychologically, this sounds more damaging than someone who can smoke every day but they handle it well. SWIM smokes frequently but not usually in copious amounts. He doesn't have any mental or physical concerns as such. If one should be concerned about their use, perhaps giving it a break is a good idea. Self-inflicted doubt is unhealthy.

Reputation Comments on this post:

Good advice

[Joe-(5-HTP)]

Originally Posted by Nature Boy

Cannabis isn't the same as alcohol in terms of brain damage risk so the usage comparison isn't accurate.

No, i wasn't comparing their effects on the brain at all, just comparing the methods in which they can be used. apologies it wasn't quite clear-

Originally Posted by Nature Boy

As for infrequent but panic-causing use, psychologically, this sounds more damaging than someone who can smoke every day but they handle it well. SWIM smokes frequently but not usually in copious amounts. He doesn't have any mental or physical concerns as such. If one should be concerned about their use, perhaps giving it a break is a good idea. Self-inflicted doubt is unhealthy.

Well, i can "handle" the panic/anxiety attacks well, or at least as well as one can handle such things lol. You are probably right. That answers the psychological aspect, what about physiological risks such as memory damage? more or less risky to do a lot infrequently than less more frequently?

[Nature Boy]

Originally Posted by Joe-(5-HTP)

That answers the psychological aspect, what about physiological risks such as memory damage? more or less risky to do a lot infrequently than less more frequently?

Short-term memory is thought to be stored by the prefrontal cortex. Many people report difficulty in memorizing things when they are directly under the influence of cannabis. SWIM has found this too on occasion. Long-term memory differs as it requires what is known as a process of rehearsal and meaningful association for it to be activated. Whether cannabis interferes with this or not is unknown but there isn't much evidence that suggests cannabis can interfere with long-term memory. Interestingly, some studies actually suggest that cannabis may improve long-term memory:

Scientists are high on idea that marijuana reduces memory impairment

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The more research they do, the more evidence Ohio State University scientists find that specific elements of marijuana can be good for the aging brain by reducing inflammation there and possibly even stimulating the formation of new brain cells.
The research suggests that the development of a legal drug that contains certain properties similar to those in marijuana might help prevent or delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease. Though the exact cause of Alzheimer's remains unknown, chronic inflammation in the brain is believed to contribute to memory impairment.
Any new drug's properties would resemble those of tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the main psychoactive substance in the cannabis plant, but would not share its high-producing effects. THC joins nicotine, alcohol and caffeine as agents that, in moderation, have shown some protection against inflammation in the brain that might translate to better memory late in life.
"It's not that everything immoral is good for the brain. It's just that there are some substances that millions of people for thousands of years have used in billions of doses, and we're noticing there's a little signal above all the noise," said Gary Wenk, professor of psychology at Ohio State and principal investigator on the research.
Wenk's work has already shown that a THC-like synthetic drug can improve memory in animals. Now his team is trying to find out exactly how it works in the brain.
The most recent research on rats indicates that at least three receptors in the brain are activated by the synthetic drug, which is similar to marijuana. These receptors are proteins within the brain's endocannabinoid system, which is involved in memory as well as physiological processes associated with appetite, mood and pain response.
This research is also showing that receptors in this system can influence brain inflammation and the production of new neurons, or brain cells.
"When we're young, we reproduce neurons and our memory works fine. When we age, the process slows down, so we have a decrease in new cell formation in normal aging. You need those cells to come back and help form new memories, and we found that this THC-like agent can influence creation of those cells," said Yannick Marchalant, a study coauthor and research assistant professor of psychology at Ohio State.
Marchalant described the research in a poster presentation Wednesday (11/19) at the Society for Neuroscience meeting in Washington, D.C.
Knowing exactly how any of these compounds work in the brain can make it easier for drug designers to target specific systems with agents that will offer the most effective anti-aging benefits, said Wenk, who is also a professor of neuroscience and molecular virology, immunology and medical genetics.
"Could people smoke marijuana to prevent Alzheimer's disease if the disease is in their family? We're not saying that, but it might actually work. What we are saying is it appears that a safe, legal substance that mimics those important properties of marijuana can work on receptors in the brain to prevent memory impairments in aging. So that's really hopeful," Wenk said.
One thing is clear from the studies: Once memory impairment is evident, the treatment is not effective. Reducing inflammation and preserving or generating neurons must occur before the memory loss is obvious, Wenk said.
Marchalant led a study on old rats using the synthetic drug, called WIN-55212-2 (WIN), which is not used in humans because of its high potency to induce psychoactive effects.
The researchers used a pump under the skin to give the rats a constant dose of WIN for three weeks – a dose low enough to induce no psychoactive effects on the animals. A control group of rats received no intervention. In follow-up memory tests, in which rats were placed in a small swimming pool to determine how well they use visual cues to find a platform hidden under the surface of the water, the treated rats did better than the control rats in learning and remembering how to find the hidden platform.
"Old rats are not very good at that task. They can learn, but it takes them more time to find the platform. When we gave them the drug, it made them a little better at that task," Marchalant said.
In some rats, Marchalant combined the WIN with compounds that are known to block specific receptors, which then offers hints at which receptors WIN is activating. The results indicated the WIN lowered the rats' brain inflammation in the hippocampus by acting on what is called the TRPV1 receptor. The hippocampus is responsible for short-term memory.
With the same intervention technique, the researchers also determined that WIN acts on receptors known as CB1 and CB2, leading to the generation of new brain cells – a process known as neurogenesis. Those results led the scientists to speculate that the combination of lowered inflammation and neurogenesis is the reason the rats' memory improved after treatment with WIN.
The researchers are continuing to study the endocannabinoid system's role in regulating inflammation and neuron development. They are trying to zero in on the receptors that must be activated to produce the most benefits from any newly developed drug.
What they already know is THC alone isn't the answer.
"The end goal is not to recommend the use of THC in humans to reduce Alzheimer's," Marchalant said. "We need to find exactly which receptors are most crucial, and ideally lead to the development of drugs that specifically activate those receptors. We hope a compound can be found that can target both inflammation and neurogenesis, which would be the most efficient way to produce the best effects."

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releas...-sah111408.php

Put simply, SWIM wouldn't go about studying mundane lists of meaningless information whilst stoned. It won't work. If it's something that truly fascinates you, there's a better chance it will be memorized because there is an association there that converts the short-term memory into a long-term memory. This is why musicians, for example, often praise the benefits of jamming stoned whereas someone studying for a test in a subject that doesn't interest them might find it difficult.

Reputation Comments on this post:

	Great find, excellent presentation. Your posts in the canna-forums have been excellent lately. Thank you very much.
	good post with evidence to back up claims

[Joe-(5-HTP)]

^ That's all really interesting, but my question was about which of these two methods would result in the least risk done to memory/other physiological side effects:

1. Using a lot of cannabis infrequently (such as 1/4 Oz once a month)
Or
2. Using less cannabis but more frequently (such as 1/16Oz once a week)

Which is less risky?

@Boca Bitch, you certainly outline the risks of number 2, but would any benefits of reducing the frequency of usage be canceled out if the amount used was increased?

[Nature Boy]

Originally Posted by Joe-(5-HTP)

Which is less risky?

It's virtually impossible to tell. If cannabis is clean, it shouldn't damage the throat and lungs significantly. As far as memory goes, when and how often would you require your memory to be at its best? Cannabis doesn't seem to effect memory once it wears off so regardless of whether one would use it once a week or once a month, the risk is low.

[Boca Bitch]

Originally Posted by Joe-(5-HTP)

swim's question is this: is cannabis the same? What method of use would be the least risky or damaging to swim's health: taking cannabis infrequently but in large amounts, or taking it more frequently but in smaller amounts.

Read: http://www.drugs-forum.com/forum/sho...4&postcount=35