Weed

Cannabis bud, commonly referred to as a 'nug.'

Cannabis, also known as marijuana and by other colloquial names, is a plant from the Central and South Asia region. It is scientifically divided into three species: Ruderalis, Indica, and Sativa. However, there is little agreement on the taxonomy and often a disconnect between the scientific classification and commercial descriptions of strains as 'Sativa' or 'Indica.' Commercial strains used for their psychoactive effects are usually hybrids of Sativa, Indica, and/or Ruderalis. The plant is primarily used for its psychoactive effects, which can include euphoria, relaxation, and sleepiness, but can also have negative side effects such as decreased short-term memory, dryness of the oral cavity ("Cotton-mouth"), impaired motor skills, and reddening of the eyes. In rare cases, cannabis can also produce anxiety, panic, or paranoia and has been linked to the development of acute psychosis. The primary psychoactive component in cannabis is tetrahydrocannabinol, but the drug also contains at least 65 other cannabinoids and 485 other compounds. The extent to which these compounds produce psychoactive effects is a matter of ongoing research. Cannabis can be consumed through various methods such as smoking, vaporization, and food consumption. Additionally, it can also be consumed in the form of extracts which have a higher concentration of psychoactive compounds. Historically, cannabis has been used for both recreational, medical, and spiritual purposes. The ancient Chinese, Egyptians and Indians have all used cannabis for medicinal purposes dating back as far as 2737 B.C. In 2013, it was the most commonly used illicit drug in the world, with 2.7-4.9% of the global population between ages 15-65 using it. Despite its widespread use, cannabis is still prohibited in most jurisdictions and enforcement varies worldwide. In recent times, there has been a growing movement to legalize cannabis for medicinal use. Studies have shown that cannabis can be used to treat a wide range of conditions such as chronic pain, PTSD, anxiety, and depression. Due to this, Canada, Belgium, Australia, the Netherlands, Spain, and 23 U.S. states have made medicinal cannabis usage legal. Furthermore, some states in the U.S have legalized cannabis for recreational use as well, and more countries and states are expected to follow suit in the near future. However, it is important to note that more research is needed to fully understand the effects of cannabis, both positive and negative, as well as the optimal ways to use it for medicinal purposes. Despite this, the legalization of cannabis represents a significant shift in societal attitudes and beliefs towards the drug, and it will be interesting to see how this trend will continue to evolve in the future.

History

The history of cannabis cultivation dates back to 4000 BCE in China, where it was used for the production of strings, ropes, textiles, paper, and food. The earliest known pharmacopoeia, the Classic of Herbal Medicine, describes the medical use of the cannabis plant, which may date as far back as 2800 BCE. The Chinese text also mentions the psychoactive effects of cannabis, but it is rarely mentioned in other Chinese texts. In India, cannabis usage has been widespread for thousands of years, being used for recreational, medicinal, and religious purposes. The Atharvaveda, an ancient text of Hinduism dating back at least 2000 years, describes cannabis as one of five sacred plants. Medicinal and religious usage of cannabis likely dates back at least 3000 years. In ancient Greece, cannabis was used to treat a number of ailments, such as salves for wounds in horses, tinctures used to treat inflammation in the ears, and the consumption of various parts of the plant for the treatment of nosebleeds and even tapeworms. Recreational consumption of cannabis is described as early as the 4th century BCE by Ephippus, and also by the famed physician Galen in the 2nd century CE, but it does not appear to have been widely used. By the beginning of the second millennium, cannabis began to spread from Central and South Asia to Arabia, appearing in Arabic documents from the period, and by the 16th century was widespread throughout Africa and areas of the Americas in contact with Europeans. In the Americas, the cannabis plant was widely cultivated and its domestic production encouraged in the United States from 1600 to the 19th century, where it was used for textile and rope production. The first country to outlaw the use of cannabis was South Africa in 1911, followed by Jamaica in 1913, potentially as methods of controlling the non-White population. Canada, the United Kingdom and New Zealand all illegalized cannabis in the 1920s, as part of a wider program of banning psychoactives such as opium.

Dosage, duration, effects.