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Salient: Victoria University of Wellington Students' Newspaper. Vol. 32, No. 10. 1969.

Conclusions

Conclusions

Marihuana, then, is a relatively harmless, 'soft' drug. Continued use does not lead to the development of tolerance, physical dependence or serious tissue pathology, (cf. alcoholism and the sequelae: cirrhosis, gastritis, brain damage.) Psychic dependence may be present in varying degrees and only infrequently reaches the level of a compulsion: most users can terminate the habit with little difficulty; and much use is casual or periodic.

The effects of marihuana show a wide variation with situation, the individual personality of the user and the dose. Increased pulse rate and suffusion of the conjunctiva appear to be among the few physical changes universally present.

Performance on some simple psychomotor tasks is unimpaired. Other tests, such as digit symbol substitution and pursuit rotor, show impairment for naive users but improvement for regular users. Performance on more complex psychomotor tasks suffers for all users.

Marihuana smoking results in a diverse range of psychological reactions, although the experience of naive users may be minimal and they may not get 'high'. There is generally good reality contact, and the effects of the drug can be suppressed to some extent. Unpleasant (or adverse) reactions occur occasionally, but there is little evidence that marihuana use leads to serious mental disturbance.