No Contest: Cannabis vs. Alcohol

By Susan Boskey

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Hands down, cannabis comes out on top despite the ever-present stigma that rears its ugly head even in legal recreational-use states. Alcohol use, however, is generally still more popular and widely accepted in the adult world. In the information age boasting huge amounts of data, it appears that easy-to-access facts about the risk factors of both cannabis and alcohol don’t really matter. Something else does.

Here are some of the reasons why I think the hard facts are overlooked. Behind the risk factors of both cannabis and alcohol lies what I believe is largely assumed social reasoning, including, but not limited to peer pressure.

Cannabis

• Cannabis in all its forms is still illegal federally; classified as a Schedule I drug with no medical benefit in the same category as heroin and maligned as a ‘gateway’ drug.
• The mindset of cannabis as the “devil weed,” beginning in the 1930s with the movie Reefer Madness, was seared into the public perception and has been passed down through generations of families.
• Even more recently cannabis has been portrayed similarly to alcohol in regards to having more risks than benefits.
• As a result people fear for their reputation and do not want to risk being labeled as some level of a ‘loser’ by those who are important to them, yet uninformed.

Alcohol

• Alcohol is more of a social lubricator.
• Alcohol in many cases confers social status.
• Joining-in relieves others for any guilt they may have about drinking.
• Alcohol consumption is a huge money maker for restaurants, sporting and other social events.

Peer-reviewed scientific studies have had much to say, especially about alcohol, since there are more data points for alcohol given it has been studied over a longer period of time. Note that the information below regarding marijuana often references regular and/or heavy recreational use and not medicinal use. Medicinal use applies the principle of utilizing the smallest amount to get the greatest health benefit.

To date most still think of medicinal and recreational use of marijuana as one and the same. This could not be further from the truth. As the overall stigma on marijuana fades, I believe these distinctions will become clearer to more and more people. But for now, and for most, marijuana is dumped in one basket.

               ISSUE                                      CANNABIS                                                     ALCOHOL

World Health Organization 2018 [1]

Drug Use and Fatal Motor Vehicle Crashes. [2]

National Institute on Drug Abuse for Teachers: Drug Facts Chat Day – Marijuana [3]

National Survey on Drug Use and Health (US) [4]

The Health Effects of Cannabis and Cannabinoids: The Current State of Evidence and Recommendations for Research [5]

Alcohol and Mental Health [6]

Alcohol as a Carcinogen [7]

Marijuana Use Associated with Increased Risk of Stroke, Heart Failure 2017 [9]

The Difference Between a Substance Use Disorder and an Addiction [10]

Remarkable Increases in Alcohol Use Disorders [11]

Drug and Alcohol Crash Risk [12]

NCADD [13]

The neural correlates of alcohol-related aggression 2018 [14]

Couple’s Marijuana Use … [15]

Memory and Marijuana [16]

Alcohol and Memory Loss [17]

Cannabis, Tobacco and Alcohol Use in Canada [18]

In the final analysis and with all of the above being true, a 2015 scientific report ranks cannabis way better than alcohol when it comes to risk factors.[19] So what’s all the hoopla about the importance of facts?

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Susan is a 2018 graduate of the Holistic Cannabis Academy with over 45 years of personal involvement in the spectrum of wellness modalities. Her mission today is to intervene in the noise of modern life and help people identify and remove stressors that trigger their dis-ease while providing strategies towards a living experience of inner calmness, contentment and inspiration.

Her curiosity about life, and health in particular, fueled her determination to learn everything she could and help others. Susan’s private practice (in-person and on Zoom) is based on the paradigm of whole-person wellness, body, mind and soul, and includes addressing lifestyle issues. As a non-physician coach she enjoys the added flexibility of providing in-depth care plans for her clients. Visit her website: http://lifestylewellnessrx.com

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