Citizens that are pushing for marijuana to be legalized most likely do not know about the serious harmful effects of it. Most just want it so that they can “get high” without being arrested. Medical use of this drug is legal in 20 states and recreational use was recently legalized in two states. Now Arizona is contemplating whether to join those two and legalize cannabis.

Marijuana is a gateway drug. People who start using this drug eventually want to try additional addictive substances because it does not have the same effect after a while. Users start getting a hold of more dangerous drugs, which become deadly.

Although other substances like alcohol and cigarettes, which are legal, are said to be more addictive than marijuana, it still has a highly addictive quality. Users always crave the feeling that it gives them but eventually the high fades away and the harmful substances in pot stays in your body for weeks or longer.

Consuming pot creates emotional damage like depression and confusion. Physical damage is also a negative effect because it kills brain cells and causes brain abnormalities. Marijuana also has 50-70 percent more cancer-causing substances so your chances of getting cancer dramatically increase.

Still some people might be for legalizing marijuana because it can be used as a natural form of medicine but in reality, it does more harm than good. Using medical marijuana may relieve symptoms of serious diseases but it also causes health problems.

Pot does not just affect your health but the way you perceive a situation as well. For example, if this drug is going to be legalized then we can expect more people to be driving intoxicated. Even though it is illegal to drive under the influence, that does not stop people from doing it now and it will just get worse. More intoxicated drivers leads to a bigger probability of threatening vehicle collisions.

Even if strict limitations are set for using pot recreationally, people are most likely going to abuse it. Everywhere from young kids to adults will still be in danger of abusing the use of it; particularly because of peer pressure.

In the end, marijuana does more harm to people than good and legalizing the recreational use of it will only cause more problems.