A conversation with ASAM President Dr. Stuart Gitlow
With three states plus the District of Columbia sanctioning recreational use of marijuana and virtually all other states either allowing for or considering decriminalization and/or medical use of the drug, the great marijuana debate has become a legislative hot topic over the last three years. For Stuart Gitlow, MD, MPH, DFAPA, however, talk of medical benefits associated with inhaling the plant is just smoke and mirrors.
Gitlow, who concludes his term as president of the American Society of Addiction Medicine this month, said there are two major issues with the drug … addiction and toxicity. The double board-certified psychiatrist, who has a private practice in Rhode Island, is concerned by the possibility of adding marijuana to the mix of alcohol and tobacco as yet another substance with the potential to do more harm than good.
The Drug
Marijuana refers to the dried leaves, flowers, stems and seeds from the hemp plant Cannabis sativa, which contains the mind-altering chemical delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), along with other compounds. The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) has found marijuana to be the most common illicit drug in America and one for which usage is on the rise. The national organization stated marijuana’s popularity, particularly since 2007, has coincided with a diminishing public perception of the drug’s risks.
However, at the same time risk perception has been declining, the drug’s potency has actually been on the rise. In looking at the amount of THC in marijuana samples confiscated by the police, the THC concentration averaged close to 15 percent in 2012 as compared to around 4 percent in the 1980s, according to the NIDA fact sheet on marijuana.
Gitlow agreed, saying, “The marijuana that is available today is much different, much more potent, than the marijuana that was available in the ‘60s. More research needs to be done to see if there are even more long-term issues with this more potent form.”
Addiction
Gitlow noted marijuana works like any other addictive drug. “There’s not debate at all within the medical community that it’s addictive … that’s a given,” he said. “It’s like any other psychoactive drug … it’s not addictive to the majority of those using it once or twice.” However, he continued, “There’s no way of knowing if a person is going to have a problem with the drug until they try it … and then they are playing Russian roulette.”
Gitlow explained, “Addictive disease is not about the drug, it’s about a brain abnormality. It exists before somebody picks up the drug.” The three factors required for addiction, he said, are a genetic abnormality, environmental trigger and the drug. “Addictive disease is in only, give or take, 15 percent of the population.”
He added popular consensus is that about 9 percent of adults and 17 percent of adolescents who use marijuana become addicted. In addition, NIDA’s marijuana fact sheet noted addiction rates jump in daily users, with as many as 25-50 percent becoming addicted.
Toxicity
“There’s a second issue with marijuana, and it’s independent of addiction. Marijuana has toxic ramifications,” Gitlow said. “Marijuana makes you stupid,” he stated bluntly. “It lowers IQ. It causes slowing of the processing speed. It causes abnormalities of attention and focus. It basically dumbs you down, and it does that more or less universally.”
When marijuana is smoked, the THC passes quickly from the lungs into the bloodstream and to the brain. THC targets cannabinoid receptors, which have a higher density in areas of the brain that influence pleasure, memory, concentration, coordination, thinking and time perception. Additionally, THC’s chemical makeup is similar to a naturally occurring brain chemical called anandamide. That similar structure lets THC be ‘recognized’ by the brain, allowing the outside compound to alter normal brain communication.
Of major concern is the affect marijuana has on brain development when used heavily among adolescents. A recent study showed marijuana users who began in adolescence had fewer connections in the areas of the brain that control memory and learning. A large, long-term New Zealand study found those who began heavily smoking marijuana in their teens lost an average of eight IQ points between ages 13 and 38. However, that impact on IQ wasn’t replicated in the study among those who didn’t begin smoking until adulthood.
NIDA also cited issues with cardiopulmonary and mental health. Gitlow said, “There’s a five-fold increase in psychotic disorders among those who use marijuana as compared to those who don’t.”
Alcohol vs. Tobacco, Marijuana
Last month, results of a new study stating marijuana is 114 times less lethal than alcohol made the media rounds and became fodder for late night comics. Gitlow said comparing the two is like comparing apples and oranges. “They affect different parts of the brain,” he said.
Gitlow also noted it is possible to ingest enough alcohol in one sitting to kill you, which isn’t really true of marijuana or tobacco. “So I could make the argument that cigarettes are safer than alcohol,” he said. However, there aren’t many physicians recommending a patient give up the occasional glass of wine and take up smoking tobacco instead.
“We’re not prohibitionists,” Gitlow continued. “No one at the American Society of Addiction Medicine says alcohol should be banned, but all these drugs collectively are an enormous burden on the American public from an economic and health-related standpoint.”
Considering the dangers of tobacco and alcohol, Gitlow said he couldn’t fathom why, as a country, we would want to add marijuana to the mix. “Why would we want to make our burden worse?” he questioned.
Possible Benefits
Gitlow reiterated his frustration at claims of marijuana being a medical marvel. “There is no medical purpose. No one has ever proven through a double-blinded trial a medical benefit of marijuana.” He continued, “That’s not to say there aren’t components within the plant that might not have medical application.”
However, Gitlow said breaking down the more than 100 components in marijuana would require scientific investigation just like any other drug in this country seeking approval from the Food and Drug Administration. He added marijuana lobbyists bringing anecdotal evidence to legislators interested in the bottom line doesn’t constitute a thorough research endeavor.
NIDA’s viewpoint is similar, noting that so far clinical evidence does not show the therapeutic benefits of marijuana outweigh the health risk. In it’s assessment of the drug, the national organization stated, “To be considered a legitimate medicine by the FDA, a substance must have well-defined and measurable ingredients that are consistent from one unit (such as a pill or injection) to the next. As the marijuana plant contains hundreds of chemical compounds that may have different effects and that vary from plant to plant, and because the plant is typically ingested via smoking, its use as a medicine is difficult to evaluate.
“However, THC-based drugs to treat pain and nausea are already FDA approved and prescribed, and scientists continue to investigate the medicinal properties of other chemicals found in the cannabis plant – such as cannabidiol, a non-psychoactive cannabinoid compound that is being studied for its effects at treating pain, pediatric epilepsy, and other disorders.”
With the increased attention being given to marijuana around the country, it’s a safe assumption that opponents and proponents will continue the debate.
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