The United States Attorney General Loretta Lynch made a big announcement about marijuana. One of the most popular arguments against the legalization of marijuana is the false belief that marijuana is a “gateway drug.”
People think that smoking weed leads to doing other, stronger drugs. It’s just not true.
Lynch said:
“When we talk about heroin addiction, we usually, as we have mentioned, are talking about individuals that started out with a prescription drug problem, and then because they need more and more, they turn to heroin. It isn’t so much that marijuana is the step right before using prescription drugs or opioids – it is true that if you tend to experiment with a lot of things in life, you may be inclined to experiment with drugs, as well. But it’s not like we’re seeing that marijuana as a specific gateway.”
More research is showing that smoking marijuana doesn’t necessarily lead to doing stronger drugs. If, however, someone does have a family history of addiction, then they may get into other drugs.
The heroin & opioid epidemic is one of our most urgent law enforcement & public health challenges. #OpioidAwareness https://t.co/iUwxc9JZ5O
— AG 83 Loretta Lynch (@AGLynch) September 20, 2016
The National Institutes on Drug Abuse said this about the issue:
“These findings are consistent with the idea of marijuana as a ‘gateway drug.’ However, the majority of people who use marijuana do not go on to use other, ‘harder’ substances. Also, cross-sensitization is not unique to marijuana. Alcohol and nicotine also prime the brain for a heightened response to other drugs and are, like marijuana, also typically used before a person progresses to other, more harmful substances.”
Many people who use hard drugs often started out doing marijuana, but that doesn’t mean marijuana led them to the harder drugs.
Someone with addiction is at risk of getting addicted to many things. It may not just be drugs. It could be pornography addiction or sex addiction. It could be overeating.
Someone suffering from addiction can have symptoms manifest in many ways.
Lynch spoke at a town hall on heroin in Kentucky this week:
Featured Image Via YouTube Video.
