About Cannabis

• Cannabis refers to the greenish or brownish material that comes from the dried flowering tops/buds & leaves of the plants, Cannabis sativa or Cannabis indica.
• Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various traditional medicines for centuries.
• Cannabis contains over 140 cannabinoids – chemicals that affect how our brain functions and affects our mental state and physical movements.
• The most abundant cannabinoids found in cannabis are THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol).
  • THC has psychoactive effects, meaning that it can alter mood, alertness, cognizance and cognitive functioning. 
  • Cannabidiol or CBD has relaxation effects but does not have the psychoactive effects of THC. CBD is also thought to relieve pain.

Impacts of cannabis

• Cannabis has various mental and physical effects, which include euphoria, altered states of mind and sense of time, difficulty concentrating, impaired short-term memory, impaired body movement (balance and fine psychomotor control), relaxation, and an increase in appetite.
• Long-term adverse effects may include addiction, decreased mental ability in those who started regular use as adolescents,chronic coughing, susceptibility to respiratory infections,etc.

Why in news?

• Germany has become the largest EU Nation to allow for recreational use of cannabis.