Marijuana study in U.S.

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32521, 3 February 1971, Page 13

Marijuana study in U.S.

(N-Z. Press Assn.—Copyright) WASHINGTON, Feb. 2. The United States Health, .Education and Welfare Department today reported that it had found little evidence to show that the use of marijuana led directly to hard drugs like heroin and LSD. But the department in a 176-page report to Congress, described as its first detailed review of the effect of marijuana on health, said that the picture was fragmentary and clearly incomplete. For example, while there was no evidence at present to suggest that marijuana was cancer-producing, and there was little basis for suspecting that it was associated with birth defects, the report did not rule out the possibility of other dangers.

“Based on our present knowledge, we cannot declare marijuana to be devoid of significant health hazards,” Mr Herbert Brown, director of the National Institute of Mental Health, said. The report said: “Many of the most important questions regarding the implications of the long-term chronic use of marijuana will require some time to answer, but it is generally conceded that marijuana use does not necessarily lead directly to the use of other drugs.

. “On a world-wide basis, there is little evidence of a progression from the use of marijuana to that of opiates or hallucinogens. “. . . Although it is true that a high percentage of heroin addicts have used marijuana, most marijuana users in the United States and elsewhere do not appear to be attracted to the use of heroin.” The report was based on studies, surveys and docu-

ments prepared under sponsorship of the Mental Health Agency and other sources. It was required under legislation passed last June by Congress, despite opposition by the Nixon Administration. In a statement, Mr Brown said that the most common effects of marijuana use were alteration of time and space perception, euphoria, easing of inhibitions and relaxation, dulling of attention, impaired, immediate memory, altered sense of identity, and giggling. In some cases, he said, it could cause dizziness, a feeling of lightheadedness, nausea and hunger. As for the connection between marijuana and cancer or birth defects, the report said that the research was prompted by the relationship between cigarette smoking and lung cancer, and fears that the drug could cause deformed infants. Further research is under way.