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Archive for the Cannabis Category

More info about Skunk

Just read this article about teenagers & skunk from March 16, 2009.

It is quite a long article so I have just given you a taster below. Well worth a read as contains lots of information about skunk as well as a ‘what would you do if your teenagers was smoking skunk’ question and answer session

 Here is an extract from the article below:

Skunk: “Kids think the strong stuff is the best stuff”

There was a furore last week when the novelist Julie Myerson wrote about evicting her teenage son for his “skunk addiction”. She justified it by saying that Britain needed to wake up to the “emergency out there called skunk”.

Myerson’s outburst may have seemed slightly hysterical to anyone whose rite of passage included smoking a joint at some hazy point in the past, yet everything about skunk is more powerful than what came before. Its strength and its pervasiveness were cited by the Government as its reasons for raising cannabis back to a Class B drug in January.

Skunk has created a new domestic drugs industry, making millions for illegal farmers - mainly Vietnamese immigrants - on Britain’s industrial estates, and it has done so in an astonishingly short time. Police seizures show that it accounted for barely 10 per cent of the cannabis sold here in the late 1990s; last year it was 80 per cent.

What struck me, talking to teenagers in the course of writing this piece, was the sheer rapidity of this transformation. I’m in my thirties, yet what young people now regard as “normal” cannabis was unheard of in this country a decade ago. “Skunk is horribly strong - you can practically feel your brain cells knocking off,” says Ben, a 19-year-old student. “But it wasn’t that we asked for it. Growing up in rural Herefordshire, it was all we could get.”

Click here to read the full article

What is Skunk and how does it differ from the usual Cannabis?

Skunk is an addictive and powerful form of cannabis that has been linked to mental health problems in users.

Skunk is a particularly potent form of Cannabis and has been linked to schizophrenia in several studies. It is thought that up to 25% of new cases of Schizophrenia could be linked to its use.

Young men who smoke cannabis seem to be particularly at risk of developing mental health problems which include loss of concentration, paranoia, aggressiveness and possible development of psychosis

Because of its potency users are more likely to become addicted to Skunk and may require a detox to come off it. Withdrawal symptoms from Skunk may include anxiety, sleep disturbance, headaches, mood swings, & tremors.

Some clinical studies have suggested that prolonged Skunk use causes brain damage visible on brain scans

The recent reclassification of Cannabis & the government TV campaign about the dangers of Cannabis has sought to highlight the mental health effects of cannabis use on young people. Much of the cannabis on the streets today is much more potent and addictive than in the past and the dangers to users are increased

Click here to view cannabis drug testing kits for home use

Click here to view professional cannabis drug testing kits

Frank on Cannabis

The new TV campaign focussing on the mental health harms of Canabis is now running.

Aimed at 11-18 yr olds the campaign will cost £2.2m and run for 6 weeks.

Cannabis remains the most commonly used drug in the UK but rates of usage are 10% lower in the 16-24yr age group compared to 10 years ago.

Greater mental health risks are associated with stronger Skunk cannabis and the rise in binge smoking. The campaign aims to message that these new forms of drug and habit are not associated with the “soft drug” view of cannabis held by many young users.

New Cannabis TV Ad Campaign

A new cannabis ad campaign was launched last week in UK warning about the links between Cannabis use and mental health problems.

The TV advert shows possible Cannabis side-effects such as as memory loss, paranoia & panic attacks. The £2.2m Home Office campaign, has been launched to coincide with drug’s recent reclassification from class c to class B. Cannabis is now the most popular illegal recreational drug.

The new TV Cannabis ad campaign is aimed at 11 to 18-year-olds. It urges those curious about the Cannabis to “Talk to Frank” by calling an information line or visiting a website.

The ‘Talk to Frank’ website gives advice & information on the dangers of drugs, the law around drug use & how to get help.

Click here to visit ‘Talk to Frank Website’

Cannabis

If you missed last nights programme on Cannabis then you can view it on BBC iplayer

Click here to view the Cannabis Programme on iplayer

Cannabis: The Evil Weed? Horizon BBC2 tonight 9pm watch it

Cannabis is the world’s favourite recreational drug (excluding alcohol and tobacco of course), but also one of the least understood.

Can Cannabis cause schizophrenia?

Is  Cannabis addictive?

Can Cannabis lead you on to harder drugs?

Or is Cannabis simply a herb, an undervalued medicine?

These questions and more will be answered on tonights Horizon Special on Cannabis in which addiction specialist Dr John Marsden discovers that modern science is finally beginning to find answers to these questions about Cannabis.

Click here to view home cannabis drug testing kits

Click here to view professional Cannabis drug testing kits

Cannabis reclassified from class C to class B drug

Cannabis was yesterday reclassified from a class C drug  to a class B drug

What does this reclassification of Cannabis mean ? 

Click here to read the opinion of Andy Hayman who was Assistant Commissioner for Special Operations at Scotland Yard in the Times online

Let us know your opinions

The Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs is preparing to give its recommendation to the Home Secretary soon that Ecstasy be downgraded from Class A to Class B.

Click here for information on Cannabis drug test kits in UK

Urine Cannabis Drug Testing Kits

The amount of time cannabis stays in the body depends on many factors such as, the amount of the drug taken, its strength, purity, the body weight of the person being tested and rate of metabolism, and whether they are a casual user or a long term user.

Average detection times for THC ( Marijuana, Cannabis, puff, spliff or hash. ) in urine drug test sample

Casual use 2-14 days

Heavy use up to 30 days

Click here to see Professional Cannabis Drug Testing Kits

Click here to see home Cannabis drug testing kits

Cannabis: ‘Stronger signals’ of declining popularity

 Below is an extract from EMCDDA annual report published 6th November 2008

Nearly a quarter of all Europeans, or around 71 million (15–64 years), have tried cannabis in their lifetime, and around 7 % (23 million) have used it in the last year — making it still Europe’s most commonly consumed illicit drug. But, in some important markets, there are now ’stronger signals’ of the drug’s waning popularity, reinforcing the analysis presented in last year’s Annual report

 Click here to read more on rates of Cannabis use from EMCDDA

Drug Testing News from around the world

In September 2008 the Japanese world of sumo wrestling was rocked by a drugs scandal.

Two Russian wrestlers tested positive for marijuana use and another was arrested on suspicion of possessing the drug.

The wrestler who was arrested has already been banned for life.

The world of sumo is very conservative and wrestlers are held to the highest moral standards.

Click here to read the full story