AboutDr Alan Galbraith Expertise I can answer most questions on most drugs. Answers can be given in either technical or layperson terminology. My main areas of interest are psychiatric, gastrointestinal and cardiovascular drugs.
Experience I have been a university lecturer/head of department for almost thirty years, but am now retired. My research interests were alcohol, smoking and cardiovascular disease.
Organizations Institute of Biology, London.
Publications Author of "Fundamentals of Pharmacology" 5th Edition published in November 2007 by Pearson Education, Australia.
Question Hello once again Dr. Galbraith. As i said before, this is a research paper on " The major negative effects of marijuana on young people in the 21st century. So therefore i need an expert's opinion on the subject. SO i will lie to ask you a couple of questions and please understand that I will take your direct quotations and insert it into my research paper included with the correct in-text citations and references.
These are my questions as followed.
1) What are your qualifications and expertness? What makes you capable of being an expert in this field?
2) In your opinion, what are the major negative effects of marijuana on young people.
3) What can be done to decrease the amount of marijuana users among our young people?
4) Does society as a whole contribute to the huge numbers of young marijuana smokers? In other words, do you blame society for this? Why?
5) As you being an expert in this field. In your overall opinion, in the long run, is marijuana most positive or negative? I ask this, keeping in mind that that marijuana does have positive effects also.
6) Currently, the legalization of marijuana in America has been a serious subject. What do you think about this ? What effects will it have on the community if it is legalized ? Do you think it should be legalized? Why?
7) Please do add any comments that you think is relevant and that I can use.
Once Again Thank You Dr. Galbraith.
Answer Dear J
As this questionn is comparitively long, I'll send the answers bit bit by bit over the next few days.
1. I am a pharmacologist with a BSc in Biochemistry, MSc in Medical Science and PhD in Medicine. I am also an author of "Fundamentals of Pharmacology" the main pharmacology text in Australia and New Zealand. A British edition al;so sells well in Europe. Although retired now, I lectured for many years in pharmacology.
2. It reduces the sense of reality and thus is an escape from everyday reality. This may cause a reduced ability to cope with stressful situations.There is evidence that it can after long term use induce psychoses. The smoke from marijuana is probably more carcinogenic than cigarette smoke and over a long period of time may induce exactly the same illnesses as tobacco smoke eg various cancers, emphysema and other COPDs.
3. Education
4. No. Maybe it should be legal as it is in some of the Stans eg Uzbekistan where it grows wild everywhere and is largely ignored by the population. I believe making drugs illegal makes a certain type of person more liable to abuse them. Many young people have a great deal of bravado which makes them want to try activities which are not generally accepted.
