CANNABIS
Cannabis is usually smoked in a cigarette called a ‘joint’, normally rolled with tobacco.
Smoked in a pipe or a water ‘bong’ (a pipe which passes the smoke through water to cool and filter it).
When smoked, cannabis usually affects you quite quickly.
Vaporisers (about £50 to buy) are less risky - they get just hot enough to release the THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol, the bit that gets you stoned) but not the tar.
Sometime people will eat cannabis, mixed with other ingredients, eg. in biscuits (cookies) or cakes.
Cannabis generally refers to the dried flowers of the female plant. It comes in the form of resin, normally extracted from the flowers of the plant, the dried flowers, or very rarely as
cannabis oil.
Cannabis affects people in different ways. It depends on how you feel, how much you smoke and where and who you are with, but generally, when smoked, the effects are felt quite quickly.
They can range from feeling relaxed, happy and laid back to feeling wired and paranoid.
For some people, effects can include eating large amounts of biscuits, pot burns in your favourite clothes and sitting on your bum all day.
Your lungs were not meant to take in hot, noxious gases, so smoking cannabis, even on its own, is probably not good for your lungs .
Cannabis is usually smoked with tobacco which is known to cause serious health problems including cancer and heart disease. The nicotine in tobacco is very addictive
If you feel down, cannabis will probably make you feel worse. You may feel sick, confused and worried – but these feeling will normally wear off as the cannabis does.
If you have an underlying mental health problem or one that you may not know about, using cannabis may bring it on. So, if you find yourself at the checkout at your local Asda stocking up on silver foil to stick to the inside of your house to stop people reading your mind, you might want to consider cutting down or even sacking cannabis altogether.
Using cannabis can become a habit. Regular users may find it hard to stop. If you smoke cannabis with tobacco you may find it even more difficult to give up cigarettes
When you use cannabis, you may keep forgetting what you’re doing and find it hard to concentrate. You might find you can’t work or study properly. You may still feel spaced out the next day.
Cannabis can make you clumsy and slow to react. Don’t smoke cannabis if you are going to drive or operate machinery.
If you are going to start or continue to use cannabis, the advice below will help reduce the impact to your health.
Don’t use tobacco
Don’t hold smoke in your lungs
You won’t get more stoned. It just means more tar and other nasty chemicals will stick to your lungs.
Don’t use a cigarette filter for a roach
You will inhale more tar. Use plain card, loosely rolled up, for a roach – this lets the smoke flow easily.
Don’t use too many papers
Three skinners will do – or you’ll breathe in too much burnt paper.
Don’t use plastic bottles, rubber hoses, PVC, foil and aluminium
these give off toxic fumes when hot. Glass, steel or brass pipes are safer.
Maybe you like to get high, but not everyone does. Show some respect. Don’t smoke near people who don’t take it – especially children and people with breathing problems.
Cannabis, is a Class B drug, which is illegal to possess, produce or supply.
According to the law, if you’re prosecuted for possession, you can get up to 5 years in prison, an unlimited fine or both. If you’re prosecuted for supply and production, you can get up to 14 years in prison, an unlimited fine or both.
It’s illegal to drive while over the permitted level of cannabis in your system. If you test positive, you’ll face a driving ban, a large fine, or even imprisonment.
When it comes to possession for personal use, some police forces will take a different approach to try to keep you out of the criminal justice system, especially if you’re under 18. So, in practice, the police will choose from the following range of options (depending on where you live in the country and whether you’ve committed any crime or similar offence before):
If you’re under 18, the police are allowed to tell your parents or carers.
Persistent offenders will be prosecuted and appear in court.
Check the laws and guidelines, as these can change over time.
Find out about penalties here:
gov.uk/penalties-drug-possession-dealing