The Unexpected Benefits Of The Marijuana Legalization
Marijuana had always been stigmatized for the longest time. Back in the days, people will frown out at you if they ever heard you were smoking weed because that’s what most Hippies do. We all know it as the plant that gives you an unnatural high and has been the subject of countless arguments in the past but recent studies of weed are showing us a different side of it. Of course, innovation played a big part as a different breed of the plant is not being cultivated for its medicinal properties and not just a pick-me-upper that it was of yesteryears. The growing popularity of cannabis in the medical circle definitely caught the attention of both those who are pro and con for the marijuana legalization. People claim it has helped them battle chronic illnesses the modern pharmacology and science weren’t able to alleviate and address.
Studies have also been popping here and there giving us factual information on the bright side of marijuana and why it deserves to be legalized and offered to individuals who can find a good use for it in improving their health and prolonging their lives. Even recreational marijuana is not to be left behind and is passed by legislators in various states all over the country. However, the marijuana legalization also has other benefits that weren’t highlighted in talks involving this humble plant. As more people discover marijuana, the lower the numbers of those individuals engaging in prohibited drug use and even that of teens taking marijuana behind everyone’s back. Maybe its legalization showed them not to do it anymore in hiding and get it from legit sellers or pay a visit to their doctors to find out if they are eligible for medical marijuana, for instance. And if they don’t, then they just don’t have access to it anymore. That’s it.
Following legalization, the rate of adolescent marijuana use in Colorado has fallen to its lowest level in nearly a decade, according to new federal survey data.
State-level numbers from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health show that a little more than 9 percent of Colorado teens age 12 to 17 used marijuana monthly in 2015 and 2016, a statistically significant drop from the prior period. That’s the lowest rate of monthly marijuana use in the state since 2007 and 2008.
And it’s not just marijuana: Rates of teen alcohol, tobacco and heroin use are down sharply in the state, as well.
Why take drugs and marijuana illegally when it is now legal, after all. The probable reasoning behind it may also be that there are fewer sellers now in the black market than there was in the past when they can openly open a marijuana business without having any trouble with the authorities. It makes sense when you look at it that way. You no longer have to inconvenience yourself devising various schemes because you can safely sell weed right under the authorities’ noses and nobody will ever question you for it. And as a result, teens and other under-aged minors no longer have resources where they can buy weed illegally and thus had to stop the habit unless they can secure means in which to buy it legally.
While legalization opponents have long argued that ending prohibition would lead to skyrocketing use by young people, that doesn’t seem to be happening.
Advocates, on the other hand, have maintained that regulating and controlling the cannabis market and instituting strict age restrictions would actually give teens less access to marijuana than they had when it was illegal and there were no checks for age at the point of sale.
In a Facebook post, cannabis consulting firm Freedman and Koski, Inc, which is run by Colorado’s former top marijuana official, said that the drop in teen use in the state “coincides with an increase in funding prevention programs from cannabis taxes.”
(Via: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/teen-marijuana-use-legalized-states-federal-data-says/)
At least, pro-marijuana legalization can add this little detail to strengthen their argument why cannabis should be legalized in more US states from now on. Whether it is for medical or recreational use, making it legal is a great way to monitor the market and discourage people from buying it illegally when they can purchase one in broad daylight if they pass all the eligibilities. And this move is a big boost to the economy especially now that the government can collect taxes from marijuana growers and sellers and businessmen selling marijuana-related accessories like dab pipes and oil rigs when before they couldn’t since it was sold underground. The growth spurt in this market has also opened up employment and livelihood opportunities to many people and thus allow them to earn an honest and decent living knowing that marijuana isn’t that bad after all.