Major Cannabis Investigations.

MAJOR CANNABIS INVESTIGATIONS

INDIAN HEMP DRUGS COMMISSION (1894)

The commission has come to the conclusion that moderate use of hemp drugs is practically attended by no evil results at all.

(Panama) CANAL ZONE COMMITTEE (1925)

The influence of [marihuana]... has apparently been greatly exaggerated...There is no evidence ... that it has any appreciably deleterious influence on the individual using it.

CANAL ZONE STUDY (1929)

... use of the drug is not widespread and ... its effects upon military efficiency and upon discipline are not great.

CANAL ZONE STUDY (1931)

 No link was found between cannabis use and any delinquency or morale problems.

(NYC) MAYOR'S COMMITTEE ON MARIHUANA (1944)

There [is] no direct relationship between the commission of crimes of violence and marihuana ... and marihuana itself has no specific stimulant effect in regard to sexual desires. The use of marihuana does not lead to morphine or cocaine or heroin addiction.

BRITISH ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON DRUG DEPENDENCE (Wooton Report 1969)

We think that the dangers of [marihuana] use as commonly accepted in the past ... have been overstated ... There is no evidence that in Western society serious physical dangers are directly associated with the smoking of cannabis ... The association in legislation of cannabis and heroin ... is inappropriate and new legislation to deal specifically and separately with cannabis ... should be introduced as soon as possible ... Possession of a small amount of cannabis ... should not be punished by imprisonment ... Sale or supply of cannabis should be punishable ... with a fine not exceeding £100, or imprisonment for a term not exceeding four months.

CANADIAN GOVERNMENT The Non-Medical Use of Drugs (1970)

Physical dependence to cannabis has not been demonstrated and it would appear that there are normally no adverse physiological effects ... occurring with abstinence from the drug, even in regular users .... Since cannabis is clearly not a narcotic we recommend that the control of cannabis be removed from the Narcotic Control Act .... The Commission is of the opinion that no one should be liable to imprisonment for simple possession.

In summary, at typical doses of cannabis use, few acute physiological effects have been detected. Those which have been identified generally seem to have little clinical significance. Even at relatively high doses, few substantial physiological changes occur.

NATIONAL COMMISSION ON MARIHUANA AND DRUG ABUSE (1972)

A large amount of research has been performed on man and animals regarding the immediate effect of marijuana on bodily processes. No conclusive evidence exists of any physical damage, disturbances of bodily processes or proven human fatalities attributable solely to even very high doses of marijuana.

These few consistently observed transient effects on the bodily function seem to suggest that marijuana is a rather unexciting compound of negligible immediate toxicity at the doses usually consumed in this country. The substance is predominantly a psychoactive drug. The feelings and state of consciousness described by the intoxicated seem to be far more interesting than the objective state noted by an observer.

[In a study of very heavy marijuana use in Jamaica, no] significant physical or mental abnormalities could be attributed to marijuana use, according to an evaluation of medical history, complete physical examination, chest x-ray, electrocardiogram, blood cell and chemistry tests, lung, liver or kidney function tests, selected hormone evaluation, and psychological testing. There was no evidence to indicate that the drug as commonly used was responsible for producing birth defects in offspring of users.

There is little proven danger of physical or psychological harm from the experimental or intermittent use of natural preparations of cannabis .... Existing social and legal policy is out of proportion to the individual and social harm engendered by the drug .... Marihuana's relative potential for harm to the vast majority of individual users and its actual impact on society does not justify a social policy designed to seek out and firmly punish those who use it.

WERKGROEP VERDOVENDE MIDDELEN - Background and Risks of Drug Use, (1972)

 Cannabis does not produce tolerance or physical dependence. The physiological effects of the use of cannabis are of a relatively harmless nature ... The current law does not respect the fact that the risks of the use of cannabis cannot be equaled to the risks of the use of substances that are pharmacologically much more potent ... This hurts the credibility of the drug law, and the prevention efforts based on the law are made untrustworthy.

THE JAMAICA STUDY (1975)

"the first intensive, multidisciplinary study of cannabis use and users to be published." The study examined the legislation, ethnohistory, and social complex of ganja, and the acute effects of smoking in a natural setting. The subjects were thirty males who had smoked an average of seven marijuana cigarettes of relatively high potency each day for an average of seventeen years, and thirty controls. Clinical studies evaluated respiratory function and hematology, electroencephalography, and psychiatric condition. Finally, psychological assessments were made of the subjects. The results of the study support the findings of the National and Canadian Commissions; no significant physiological or psychological differences were found between long-term smokers and non-smokers, there was no evidence of physical dependency (addiction), severe overdose reactions, insanity, cerebral atrophy, brain damage, personality deterioration, or "amotivational syndrome." Id. at 83-84, 150-151, 165-166 (1975). Governor Raymond Shafer wrote the foreword to the report:

While Americans are concerned with the alleged "amotivational" and drug-escalation effects of marihuana, ganja in Jamaica serves to fulfill values of the work ethic; for example, the primary use of ganja by working-class males is as an energizer. Furthermore, there is no problem of drug escalation in the Jamaican working class; as a multipurpose plant, ganja is used medicinally, even by nonsmokers, and is taken in teas by women and children for prophylactic and therapeutic purposes. For such users, there is no reliance even on patent medicines, amphetamines, or barbiturates, let alone heroin and LSD. Further, the use of ganja appears to be a "benevolent alternative" to heavy consumption of alcohol by the working class. Admissions to the mental hospital in Jamaica for alcoholism account for less than one percent annually, in contrast to other Caribbean areas where ganja use is not pervasive and admission rates for alcoholism are as high as fifty-five percent.

This study indicates that there is little correlation between use of ganja and crime, except insofar as the possession and cultivation of ganja are technically crimes. There were no indications of organic brain damage or chromosome damage among the subjects and no significant clinical (psychiatric, psychological or medical) differences between the smokers and controls....

Despite its illegality, ganja use is pervasive, and duration and frequency are very high; it is smoked over a longer period in greater quantities with greater THC potency than in the United States, without deleterious social or psychological consequences. The major difference is that both ganja use and expected behaviors are culturally conditioned and controlled by well-established tradition. The findings throw new light on the cannabis question, particularly that the relationship between man and marihuana is not simply pharmaceutical, and indicate the need for new approaches.

REPORT OF DOMESTIC COUNCIL DRUG ABUSE TASK FORCE - "White Paper on Drug Abuse" 1975 (this is the report that Nixon threw in the garbage, I think)

The report urged that marijuana possession offenses be "de-emphasized" because they posed the least risk of harm to the individual and to society of the drugs commonly used in the United States. Id at 33.

Additional studies have been published which indicate that even very heavy use of cannabis over long periods of time does not have deleterious physiological or psychological effects. See, e.g., Mendelson, Behavioral and Biological Concomitants of Chronic Marihuana Use (U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command - 1974) [released to public in November 1975] (finding no significant adverse effects on physiological, cognitive or neurological functioning following chronic marijuana smoking, including no changes in testosterone levels following chronic marijuana smoking).

THE GREEK STUDY (1976) Hashish, A Study of Long-Term Use,

In a 1975 study of hashish smokers in Greece, Stefanis and Issodorides presented microphotographs of damaged human sperm and suggested that the low arginine content in the sperm nuclei indicated "deviant maturation." It was later discovered that the photographs had been doctored and Stefanis and Issodorides were forced to issue a "correction of misinformation" in the Science journal.

The main finding of the study, which was sponsored by the U.S. government's National Institute on Drug Abuse, was that, even after 25 years of use, the acute effects of hashish were qualitatively similar to those in less experienced users, indicating no long-term buildup of tolerance.

SENATE STANDING COMMITTEE ON SOCIAL WELFARE Australia (1977)

One of the most striking facts concerning cannabis is that its acute toxicity is low compared with that of any other drugs... No major health effects have manifested themselves in the community ... Legal controls [should] not [be] of such a nature as to...cause more social damage than use of the drug ... Cannabis legislation should be enacted that recognises the significant differences between ... narcotics and cannabis in their health effects ... Possession of marihuana for personal use should no longer be a criminal offence.

THE COSTA RICA STUDY - A Study in Chronic Marijuana Use (1980)

In 1971, the National Institutes of Health and the University of Florida cooperated in a study led by William Carter to examine chronic cannabis use in Costa Rica. Eighty-four cannabis smokers and 156 control subjects (who had never smoked ganja) were given a battery of sophisticated medical and psychological tests. The similarities between the users and non-users outweighed the differences and the cannabis smokers generally enjoyed longer-lasting relationships with their mates. The study found no significant health consequences to the chronic smokers.

The NIH refused to accept the final report for publication and demanded that it be rewritten three times. Still not satisfied, they had it rewritten again by another editor and ultimately printed only 300 copies. A copy of the original version was leaked to the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES - An Analysis of Marijuana Policy, (1982)

Committee recommended the immediate decriminalization of marijuana, and in the long run, its regulation and taxation. The Committee found no clear evidence that marijuana use leads to any long-term health consequences.

Committee concluded that no causal relationship had been established between marijuana use and undesirable behavior.

The potential effects on the development of adolescents, the Committee's primary concern, are not at issue because the right advocated herein applies strictly to adults.

In the final analysis, any potential danger associated with marijuana use was not seen as serious enough to override the factors weighing in favor of decriminalization.

Over the past forty years, marijuana has been accused of causing an array of anti-social effects including ... provoking crime and violence,.. leading to heroin addiction,.. and destroying the American work ethic in young people. [These] beliefs ... have not been substantiated by scientific evidence...The advantages of a policy of regulation include ... the savings in economic and social costs of law enforcement ..., better controls over the quality and safety of the product, and, possibly, increased credibility of warnings about risks ... persuasion rather than prosecution ... [enforcement] on the edge of constitutional limitations ... [will foster] disrespect for all law and the system in general.

THE EXPERT GROUP Report on Effects of Cannabis Use, (1982)

...there is insufficient evidence to enable us to reach incontestable conclusions as to the effects on the human body of the use of cannabis... There is evidence to suggest that the therapeutic use of cannabis or of substances derived from it for the treatment of certain medical conditions may, after further research, prove to be beneficial.

THE COPTIC STUDY - (1983)

In 1981, two UCLA psychologists, Drs. Ungerleider and Schaeffer, tested the physical and mental health of ten members of the Jamaica-based Ethiopian Zion Coptic Church. The church, which has official recognition from governments in Jamaica and the U.S., believes the use of ganja to be a "spiritual, integral act" and claims that the burning bush in the Biblical Moses epic symbolizes cannabis. The study's subjects believed that smoking 16 high-potency spliffs (each one equal to five average-size cannabis cigarettes) every day for 10 years had improved their minds.

The study showed absolutely no brain differences between the subjects and non-smokers - nor did it confirm the increase in IQs claimed by the Coptics.

MARIJUANA RESCHEDULING PETITION (1988)

Various agencies petitioned to have marijuana reclassified from a Schedule I to a Schedule II substance under the Controlled Substance Act. In addition to finding that there were valid and accepted medical uses for marijuana, and recommending that marijuana be reclassified so that it might be available by prescription, Judge Young made the following findings of fact:

4. Nearly all medicines have toxic, potentially lethal effects. But marijuana is not such a substance. There is no record in the extensive medical literature describing a proven, documented cannabis-induced fatality.

5. This is a remarkable statement. First, the record on marijuana encompasses 5,000 years of human experience. Second, marijuana is now used daily by enormous numbers of people throughout the world. Estimates suggest that from twenty million to fifty million Americans routinely, albeit illegally, smoke marijuana without the benefit of medical supervision. Yet, despite this long history of use and the extraordinarily high numbers of social smokers, there are simply no credible medical reports to suggest that consuming marijuana has caused a single death

6. By contrast, aspirin, a commonly used, over-the-counter medicine, caused hundreds of deaths each year.

7. Drugs used in medicine are routinely given what is called an LD-50. The LD-50 rating indicates at what dosage fifty percent of test animals receiving a drug will die as a result of drug induced toxicity. A number of researches have attempted to determine marijuana's LD-50 rating in test animals, without success. Simply stated, researches have been unable to give animals enough marijuana to induce death.

15. In strict medical terms marijuana is far safer than many foods we commonly consume. For example, eating ten raw potatoes can result in a toxic response. By comparison, it is physically impossible to eat enough marijuana to induce death.

16. Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man. By any measure of rational analysis marijuana can be safely used within a supervised routine of medical care.

Id at 56-59.

AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL DRUG STRATEGY COMMITTEE (1994)

Australia experiences more harm ... from maintaining cannabis prohibition policy than it experiences from the use of the drug ... We conclude that cannabis law reform is required in this country...Any social policy should be reviewed when there is reason to believe that the costs of administering it outweigh the harms reduced.

MINISTRY OF HEALTH, WELFARE AND SPORT Netherlands (1995)

Cannabis is not very physically toxic ...Everything that we now know...leads to the conclusion that the risks of cannabis use cannot ... be described as 'unacceptable'...It has been demonstrated that the more or less free sale of ... [marihuana] for personal use in the Netherlands has not given rise to levels of use significantly higher than in countries which pursue a highly repressive policy ... Dutch policy on drugs over the last twenty years...can be considered to have been successful.

NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES - Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base (1999)

The potential therapeutic value of cannabinoids is extremely broad... Scientific data indicate the potential therapeutic value of cannabinoid drugs, primarily THC, for pain relief, control of nausea and vomiting, and appetite stimulation...The psychological effects of cannabinoids, such as anxiety reduction, sedation, and euphoria can influence their potential therapeutic value... Marijuana plants have been used since antiquity for both herbal medication and intoxication...

In general population, marijuana use is not associated with increased mortality. There is no conclusive evidence that marijuana causes cancer in humans, including cancers usually related to tobacco use ... the adverse effects of marijuana use are within the range tolerated for other medications...Few marijuana users develop dependence...[are] less likely to do so than users of other drugs (including alcohol and nicotine) and marijuana dependence...[is] less severe than dependence on other drugs...Marijuana and THC withdrawal...is mild and subtle compared with the profound physical syndrome of alcohol or heroin withdrawal....

Cannabinoids are an interesting group of compounds with potentially far-reaching therapeutic applications ... but the road to market...is expensive ... and studded with scientific, regulatory, and commercial obstacles. There is no evidence that marijuana serves as a stepping stone on the basis of its particular physiological effect...Instead, the legal status of marijuana makes it a gateway drug.

The U.S. Government's response to the overwhelming evidence from all the studies attesting to the beneficial qualities of cannabis is typified by remarks made by James O. Mason, head of the U.S. Public Health Service.

In early June 1991, the Deputy Director of National Drug Control Policy, Herbert D. Kleber, assured a national television audience that anyone with a legitimate medical need for cannabis would be able to obtain a permit. A few weeks later, however, Mason announced that the program would be suspended because it undercut the Bush administration's "War on Drugs":

If it is perceived that the Public Health Service is going around giving marihuana to folks, there would be a perception that this stuff can't be so bad. It gives a bad signal. I don't mind helping these people ... but there is not a shred of evidence that smoking marihuana assists a person with AIDS.

The program was discontinued in March 1992, and 28 patients whose applications had already been approved were denied the promised relief. The few patients who were already receiving legal cannabis continued to be supplied with the drug. As of 1996, only eight people are allowed what is for all others a forbidden medicine. In spite of the latest study, by the Institute of Medicine, in 1999, which begrudgingly admitted the therapeutic value of cannabis, U.S. public officials continue to obfuscate and deny the truth to the detriment of public health for the citizens.

Cannabis is undoubtedly one of the most thoroughly studied psychoactive substances known to man and certainly has the longest history of use, with the possible exception of alcohol. In thousands of years of use by millions of people, it has proven to be relatively harmless as compared to even the most benign-seeming drugs and has never been shown to cause even a single death.

© Copyright WPT 2002

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