estimates that there are over 140 million people, or 2.5% of the world population, who use marijuana. Doctors, patients, and supporters for medical marijuana, have been fighting for the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes. The government remains strong in its fight to keep marijuana illegal. Currently, nine states have legalized marijuana for medical use. These states include: AK, AZ, CA, CO, HI, ME, NV, OR, WA. This is becoming a major problem as more and more states adopt this principle. Many studies are being conducted on the pros and cons of marijuana. An alarming amount of medical patients are declaring that marijuana is the most helpful treatment, yet the government still refuses to allow marijuana to be legal for medicinal purposes. .
There are many obvious reasons why marijuana is still illegal today. Marijuana is an addictive drug and can cause substantial health problems. Many short and long term harms come along with it. The government stands by this belief. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration reports that short term effects of marijuana consist of: "memory loss, trouble with thinking and problem solving, loss of motor skills, increase in heart rate, and anxiety" (DEA). Long term effects include cancer, heart attacks, weak immune system to name a few. Over 400 chemicals exist in marijuana. The DEA says that "smoking one marijuana cigarette deposits about four times more tar into the lungs than a filtered tobacco cigarette." .
Marijuana is also popular among teenagers. This is another reason why the government wants to keep marijuana illegal. The DEA claims that marijuana is extremely harmful because it is a gateway to more powerful and more dangerous drugs. The DEA states that long term studies show that "very few young people use other illegal drugs without first trying marijuana" (DEA). The government knows that not all people who try marijuana go on to bigger and better drugs.
