Marijuana and Teenagers

            
             I think that marijuana usage is one of the most common problems of teenagers today so I decided to find out some of the problems and reasons why teenagers are using marijuana.
             Marijuana has been used since the early 1900's to make clothing and rope and later used widely throughout Asia for medicinal and recreational purposes.
             My first source of information came from the book "The Great Brain Robbery" by Tom Scott and Trevor Grice. This book is about all sorts of drugs and I found it very useful for my topic.
             Signs that teenagers are using drugs can range from behavior changes, physical changes, school attitude changes, physical changes, mental and emotional changes and social changes.
             Some of these are: dramatic and unexpected changes in attitudes, drop in school grades, less concentration and motivation, erratic sleeping and eating habits, rapid mood swings, loss of short term memory, changes in friends, drawn back and secretive.
             Short term affects can include reddening of the eyes, increased appetite, paranoia and anxiety.
             I did a survey on a class of 23 and found that 56.5% of students had tried marijuana while 47.5% used it on a regular basis and only 10% had ever felt pressured to try it by their peers.
             Most students had tried marijuana between the ages of 11-14 years and only one said that they would use marijuana to impress their friends/family etc. 56.5% of students said that their marijuana usage get in the way of their school work or studies.
             I think that my survey proved that not all teenagers are affected by marijuana and not easily influenced just because of their friends or families opinions.
             My visual source of information came from various Internet sites about teenagers and marijuana. I learned from these that most people between the ages of 12 - 18 try the drug because of curiosity. People whose close friends and family do it are most likely to try it. .
             Some people think marijuana improves their creative talents but there is no scientific proof that this has happened but marijuana may increase a persons willingness to accept new ideas and some people think that marijuana give them a new understanding about life.