While pockets of stigma against cannabis exist yet, it is now mainstream, even revered. As appreciation for this plant grows, its legalization spreads. Weed in DC is legal now and stores are dispensing high quality buds. However, some old-school myths are proving pervasive and unrelenting. Here, we happily debunk them all and welcome you into our Say High DC family.
Myth 1: Kids were safer under prohibition.
In older days, a motivating reason for prohibition was to keep children safe from cannabis. However, there is no evidence to support this in any way. In fact, as the New York Times explains, more teens were using cannabis than ever before. They were smoking more weed than cigarettes, with at least one in every 15 adolescents smoking it every day.
However, these statistics come from states that prohibit its use. Such numbers are not coming out of states with friendlier laws. They are coming out of stricter ones. Legalization advocates argue that regulating the cannabis environment remains the only effective way to lower teen usage rates. Importantly, emerging data only corroborates this claim. Without doubt too.
Myth 2: Weed offenders are filling jails.
Back in 2017, it was illegal to visit a weed dispensary in DC. Police would arrest you. They arrested 660 000 people for cannabis-related crimes across the United States that year. However, the Drug Policy Alliance tells us this is a miniscule comparison to other crimes. Weed offenders are a tiny minority in prisons, but of drug-related offenses, weed was high on the list.
Life is very different now. Weed is no longer criminalized. Violations are civil these days, punishable by fines, community service, and similar sentences. Not incarceration. Around 40 000 people languish in jails today, both in state and federal facilities. All are for serious offenses, like trafficking large quantities and otherwise distributing illegally.
Myth 3: Weed causes cancer.
To be fair, smoking is never good and hurts the lungs. However, unlike cigarettes, cannabis does not contain added chemicals or harmful carcinogens. Further, people smoke a lot less weed than cigarettes, not enough to cause cancer, which is yet another reduction in risk. As a study in the Washington Post explains, even using weed all day would never ever do it.
The reality is that cannabis inhibits cancer growth, slows its spread, and even treats all related systems. Many studies prove this, with some showing it kills cancer cells outright. What is more, cannabis is a bronchodilator, so it helps to clear and open the airways. Turns out, this makes smoking weed a good way to treat lung cancer, even more so when used regularly.
Myth 4: Only criminals use cannabis.
While criminals enjoy pot as much as the rest of us do, most of us are not invested in crime. No proof exists to even suggest that cannabis causes criminal behavior or an increase in crime. Other factors are more likely responsible. Certainly, they cannot be ruled out. Causality might work in the reverse entirely: Criminals might well like weed, but for various personal reasons.
Clearly, cannabis has no association with violence at all, so no violent crime. According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine and millions of anecdotal users, weed is calming. Peaceful. Its relaxing effects might well deter people from crime. While it is true that underlying conditions may rear their head at any time, it is evidently not the weed.
Myth 5: Cannabis is addictive.
There is some truth to this myth, but not in the misinformation that spreads it. While cannabis dependency is possible, it is very, very rare, affecting only an already small scraggle of heavy users. Evidence provides some clarity. Almost all dependency cases have other drug issues behind them, such as heroin, meth, or cocaine use. What is more, words have meaning.
The definition of addiction varies between people. Some say any sort of dependency, others an inability to stop oneself. Still others require some type of withdrawal. With such comparison, pot is mild. In fact, it can help with addiction problems by treating the worst cases. As the U.S. National Library says, it is effective in the fight against opioids and other prescription drugs.
Myth 6: Cannabis is the “gateway” drug.
People inclined toward experimenting with cannabis are likely to try other substances, as well. This is human nature, with proven statistics. However, since correlation is not causative, it is irresponsible to blame weed for this. No studies anywhere even suspect cannabis of being to blame, except persistent and lingering rumors back from prohibition days.
In fact, as published in the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, there is proven no causal link at all between the effects of cannabis and any subsequent use or abuse of other illicit drugs. Rather, evidence is starting to emerge that an overreliance on pharmaceuticals from birth to the grave might well prove a more prominent suspicion.
Myth 7: Marijuana is dangerous.
Cannabis is no way dangerous. The belief that it is somehow survives today and is among the most persistent of all. During prohibition, and without any proof whatsoever, people said it killed brain cells, destroyed all health, mental, emotional, physical, spiritual. Its list of harm seemed endless. Except, none of it was ever true. Study after study proves otherwise.
Turns out, cigarettes, prescriptions, alcohol, and other hard drugs are to blame for these ill health effects. These are substances many cannabis users also enjoy. The truth is that cannabis is good for you, not dangerous. The U.S. National Library of Medicine shows clearly how cannabis is now opening new targets for drug developments and other novel applications.
Myth 8: Cannabis is completely harmless.
As with falsely believing cannabis dangerous, you would be wrong to think it completely harmless. There are some negative consequences associated with very heavy use. Bronchitis is a risk when overdoing it, along with other respiratory conditions. Vaporizers remove some risk, but not all. In fact, they may cause some issues of their own. Then, there are too many edibles.
What is more, other hazards might present themselves to cannabis users. As the Scientific American explains, driving stoned could cause a severe car accident. You could fall off a cliff. These are tough examples, but the risks are very real. As with all things good in life, however, moderation is key. Using cannabis responsibly is part of enjoying it to its fullest.
Say High DC: Our Weed Dispensary in Washington DC
There are many more reasons to use cannabis than not. Regardless of how pervasive these myths are, the stigma surrounding its use is gone. People love cannabis. Seemingly all people. Everywhere. It is good for the body, heart, and mind, and everybody knows it. Come Say High DC. We strive to be the best dispensary in Washington DC, with quality cannabis worth its name.