Depression

[Varia]

Re: Depression

Did you know marijuana is a depressant? That's probably one of the worst things to do when suffering from depression. Adding apathy and addiction to the equation is more than two steps backwards.

[korny]

Re: Depression

http://www.hempworld.com/HempPharm/articles/marijuanagrowsbraincells02.html

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071023183937.htm

Yes I knew that, but hey! Doesn't truly seem to be the case now does it?

[Varia]

Re: Depression

Why can't potheads just admit that they want to get baked and not have to try and make themselves feel good about it with science projects.

Regarding the first article:

The testing was done on rats and

"That does not mean that general use in healthy people is beneficial," said Memorial University of Newfoundland psychology professor William McKim. "We need to learn if this happens in humans, whether this is useful in healthy people and whether THC causes it as well."

So the results of the study are not applicable to humans, and general use is not beneficial. Is this a maybe sorta kinda thing?

McKim warns that marijuana disrupts memory and cognition. "These effects can be long-lasting after heavy use," he said. "This makes it difficult to succeed academically if you use it excessively." (This statement is contradicted by study that cannabis has no long term effect on cognition and memory. Ed.)

While not necessarily related to depression, this alone is enough to steer me away from it. The vast majority of people that I know who smoke marijuana have become more "slow", so to speak, since they began using it regularly. They develop tendencies of being under the influence while not actually under the influence. It's fairly apparent.

"Occasional light use probably does not have very serious consequences. [But], there is some evidence that marijuana smoke might cause cancer," he cautioned. (Actually there is not one reported case of lung cancer from marijuana world-wide, see LegaliseIt.com Ed.)

Again, not related to the article, but one more reason to stay away.

Regarding the second article

Testing was also done on rodents.

A new neurobiological study has found that a synthetic form of THC, the active ingredient in cannabis, is an effective anti-depressant at low doses. However, at higher doses, the effect reverses itself and can actually worsen depression and other psychiatric conditions like psychosis.

How much is considered a low dose and a high dose? Maybe a low dose could be considered one joint and a high dose is 5 joints. Maybe a low dose is one puff and a high dose is one joint. There are no numbers that tell us anything that can be of any use to humans.

Laboratory animals were injected with the synthetic cannabinoid WIN55,212-2 and then tested with the Forced Swim test -- a test to measure "depression" in animals; the researchers observed an antidepressant effect of cannabinoids paralleled by an increased activity in the neurons that produce serotonin. However, increasing the cannabinoid dose beyond a set point completely undid the benefits, said Dr. Gabriella Gobbi of McGill University.

Going back to the previous quote, there is a threshold that if crossed will cause negative effects.

Dr. Gobbi and her colleagues were prompted to explore cannabis' potential as an anti-depressant through anecdotal clinical evidence, she said. "As a psychiatrist, I noticed that several of my patients suffering from depression used to smoke cannabis. And in the scientific literature, we had some evidence that people treated with cannabis for multiple sclerosis or AIDS showed a big improvement in mood disorders. But there were no laboratory studies demonstrating the anti-depressant mechanism of action of cannabis."

They say it helps your mood. No mentions of fighting depression. Being in a better mood and depression are two entirely different things. What happens when you aren't high anymore? You're in the same situation you were in last time you weren't high. Also, again, there is no evidence produced of the anti-depressant properties of marijuana.

Because controlling the dosage of natural cannabis is difficult -- particularly when it is smoked in the form of marijuana joints -- there are perils associated with using it directly as an anti-depressant.

lol?

"We know that it's entirely possible to produce drugs which will enhance endo-cannabinoids for the treatment of pain, depression and anxiety," she said.

That's great, but the drugs they are talking about are not marijuana.

I am no expert on the matter of marijuana, but from what I have observed, I want no part of it.

[TC_llama499]

Re: Depression

its a proven fact that marijuana helps with nausea and pain relief for chemotherapy patients and also helps with anorexia and insomnia. but no matter how you look at it there is always going to be the argument for it and against it. yes its not 100% healthy to breath in marijuana smoke, but then again what smoke is healthy to inhale. also there have been no reported deaths from marijuana yet smoking tobacco is the leading cause of death. yet smoking weed is still worse?


EDIT: everyone who is enterested at all in this topic or even learning about the million dollar crop (hemp) should check out the book The Emperor Wears No Clothes

[A2P]

Re: Depression

Did you know marijuana is a depressant? That's probably one of the worst things to do when suffering from depression. Adding apathy and addiction to the equation is more than two steps backwards.

Marijuana is neither a depressant nor a stimulant. It is a psychedelic. Trust me, I would know.

[kommisar[os]]

Re: Depression

dope has 10x the amount of tar cigarettes do, minus all the addictive chemicals. Thing is most people who smoke dope also smoke cigarettes so the accumulation of both doesn't really help.

[korny]

Re: Depression

Darn rats, why can't you possess wit and reason for the ignorant people out there!? Not that we use them as subjects for nearly every other study, and use the information gathered from their tests as near conclusive evidence! "It's marijuana we're talking about though, so I dont trust any of this one bit!" Give me a break.

There's a thread in the critical thinking forum arguing the benefits of it's legalization and branches out to all the aspects related to it. So if you really want to delve into this subject further, and you're able to provide me with evidence that works against what I already know, then I am more than willing to debate with you there about it, since you think I'm just some pothead who's not admitting he wants to get baked without being hassled by the government.

On another note.

Thread un-hijack.

[xealix]

Re: Depression

When did this become a debate about pot? Maybe you should get back to the real subject, which is ways to keep from being depressed. Pot being one thing the wouldn't help.

[TC_llama499]

Re: Depression

dope has 10x the amount of tar cigarettes do, minus all the addictive chemicals. Thing is most people who smoke dope also smoke cigarettes so the accumulation of both doesn't really help.

maybe you should of looked up the real stats, this is only true when smoked out of a "joint" and if the user holds the smoke in longer then the average cigarette smoker.



anyways back to the topic, try picking up a hobby like snowboarding or skateboarding.

[kommisar[os]]

Re: Depression

and the majority of people smoke dope out of joints. although i'm sure the smart ones use alternative ways to avoid such damage...

drugs shouldn't be relied on for anti-depressants anyways.

[xealix]

Re: Depression

no you shouldnt drugs.
drugs are bad. no matter how they make you feel that's the fact. I agree with the skateboarding thing.

[TC_llama499]

Re: Depression

and the majority of people smoke dope out of joints. although i'm sure the smart ones use alternative ways to avoid such damage...

drugs shouldn't be relied on for anti-depressants anyways.

yes i agree with you on both of these points. Even Prescription drugs are bad for you. just try going outside there is millions of things to do that will distract you from depression.

[korny]

Re: Depression

Yes because prozac ( a prescribed anti-depressant)in comparison has done more to help right?

[TC_llama499]

Re: Depression

lol compare...

Prozac side effects...

Insomnia
    * Nausea
    * Weakness
    * Headache 
    * Diarrhea 
    * Loss of appetite
    * Drowsiness 
    * Anxiety 
    * Nervousness
    * Shakiness (tremor)
    * Dry mouth 
    * Decreased sex drive
    * Indigestion
    * Dizziness
    * Sweating
    * Impotence
    * Ejaculation problems
    * Flushing (redness of the skin, especially the face)
    * Abnormal dreams
    * Constipation
    * Gas
    * Vomiting
    * Fever or chills
    * Weight loss
    * Vision changes
    * Chest pain
    * High blood pressure (hypertension)
    * Increased appetite and weight gain
    * Taste changes.

Source

http://depression.emedtv.com/prozac/prozac-side-effects-p2.html

Marijuana side effects...

*Temporary problems with memory and learning
 *distorted perception (sights, sounds, time, touch)
 *trouble with thinking and problem solving
 *increased heart rate
 *increased hunger
 *Dry Mouth
 *Sleepy

Source
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)








anyways enough about this, if you want to debate this feel free to PM me.

[korny]

Re: Depression

Well I was more or less referring to something like this.

"In 1989, Joseph Wesbecker shot dead eight people and injured 12 others before killing himself at his place of work in Kentucky. Wesbecker had been taking the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressant fluoxetine for four weeks before these homicides, and this led to a legal action against the makers of fluoxetine, Eli Lilly.[48] The case was tried and settled in 1994, and as part of the settlement a number of pharmaceutical company documents about drug-induced activation were released into the public domain. Subsequent legal cases...have further raised the possibility of a link between antidepressant use and violence."[49]
A meta-analysis published in February 2008 combined 35 clinical trials of four newer antidepressants (fluoxetine, paroxetine (Paxil), nefazodone (Serzone) and venlafaxine (Effexor)). These antidepressants belonging to three different pharmacological groups were considered together, and the authors did not analyze them separately. The authors concluded that "although the difference [between the placebo and antidepressants] easily attained statistical significance", it did not meet the criterion for clinical significance, as used by National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (UK), "for any but the most severely depressed patients."[50] Some articles in the press using the titles "The creation of the Prozac myth"[51] and "Prozac does not work in majority of depressed patients"[52][53] presented these general findings about the relative efficacy of antidepressants and placebo as the findings about ineffectiveness of fluoxetine. In a follow-up article, the authors of the meta-analysis noted that "unfortunately, during its initial coverage, the media often portrayed the results as “antidepressants do not work”, which misrepresented our more nuanced pattern of findings."

But that works too.