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Sunday, July 08, 2012

Marijuana "The Gateway Drug"?

For generations, marijuana has been considered the ultimate "gateway drug." But a new study out in the Journal of School Health disproves that theory, and actually find that alcohol – not marijuana – is the ultimate gateway drug. Researchers discovered that the common orthodoxy that marijuana users will move on to try harder drugs is misleading, and that actually, those who start drinking alcohol are the ones more likely to try marijuana and eventually harder drugs. The study showed that seniors in high school who consumed alcohol at least once in their lives were 13 times more likely to sue cigarettes, 16 times more likely to sue marijuana, and 13 times more likely to use harder drugs like cocaine. Researchers concluded that if drug prevention is the goal, then the whole frame needs to be shifted away from marijuana and toward alcohol – one of the most dangerous, yet legal, drugs in America.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Like we didn't already know this. And what about tobacco?

Anonymous said...

duh..man made alcohol..god made marijuana..now who do u trust!

Anonymous said...

Well HOORAH for the Journals study! I have friends who have smoked for 40 and have yet to consume harder drugs, I would let them drive me anywhere but not get in the car with someone who just had one or two alcoholic LEGAL beverages. Just think how much money the government would make on the taxes alone! And how much more time the legal system would have to solve real crime. The taxes would pay for a lot of school lunches and HVAC systems.You know Gov O'Malley would love to tax it!