Chronic alcohol use can lead to liver diseases such as fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis, and cirrhosis, gastritis and pancreatitis. In general, marijuana is considered less harmful than alcohol but alcohol can be considered more socially acceptable. After all, you can only purchase cannabis products at dispensaries where in some states you can purchase alcohol in supermarkets. Additionally, alcohol is more socially acceptable in public use or work situations while using cannabis at a work function could be looked down upon. Prolonged alcohol use can lead to physical dependence, where the body becomes reliant on alcohol to function normally.This can cause the shakes and can affect your ability to lead a normal life.
One study examined these data points exploring when cannabis was legalized vs. when retail sales began. That roughly translates to cannabis is not directly related to any increase in the chances of death or has a significant impact on your lifespan. Additionally, while you can have a cannabis overdose it’s not remotely fatal while an overdose of alcohol can cause lasting damage and even death. Weed is not without its pitfalls but alcohol is by far more problematic. It’s also important to remember that there aren’t many high-quality, long-term studies on weed and its effects. Both can also leave you feeling a bit worse for wear the next day, though this is more likely to happen with alcohol.
Recently, North American edible sales have soared, climbing to more than $3.5 billion in 2022, per the market research firm Global Market Insights. While there’s no arguing both substances are popular and both come with some risks, it’s less clear whether alcohol or edibles consumption is worse for your health. The truth is, both alcohol and weed may cause negative health effects, including addiction. If you find that smoking weed starts to affect your life in unhealthy ways and leads to unwanted consequences, those are signs you might be developing an addiction and should seek medical care. The other factor that makes it hard to answer this question is the relative lack of studies on the negative health effects of weed.
- Again, a cannabis overdose can cause increased nausea and vomiting but is not fatal.
- Conversely, other recent data suggest a lower risk for dementia in people consuming a few alcoholic beverages a day.
- For decades, our federal government and marijuana prohibition proponents have convinced the public that marijuana is so deadly that it must be kept illegal at all costs.
- Other ways to get help include talking with a mental health professional or seeking help from a support group such as Alcoholics Anonymous or a similar type of self-help group.
Alcohol, tobacco, and prescription painkillers are likely deadlier than other drugs because they are legal, so comparing their aggregate effects to illegal drugs is difficult. Some drugs are very harmful to individuals, but they’re so rarely used that they may not be a major public health threat. A few drugs are enormously dangerous in the short-term but not the long-term (heroin), or vice versa (tobacco). And looking at deaths or other harms caused by certain drugs doesn’t always account for substances, such as prescription medications, that are often mixed with others, making them more deadly or harmful than they would be alone. It’s a commonly held belief that smoking weed has fewer negative health effects than drinking alcohol, especially now that marijuana is legal in New York and many other states across the country.
Impact on your safety
This article has been reviewed by Dr. Anand Dugar, an anesthesiologist, pain medicine physician and the founder of Green Health Docs. Graduating from medical school in 2004 and residency in 2008, Dr. Dugar has been a licensed physician for almost 20 years and has been leading the push for medical cannabis nationwide. One thing that’s clear about the alcohol vs. weed debate is that both should be used responsibly and driving while intoxicated on anything should be avoided at all costs.
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In some people, the initial reaction may feel like an increase in energy. But as you continue to drink, you become drowsy and have less control over your actions. Depending on who you ask, you might be told to drink a few glasses of red wine a day or to avoid alcohol altogether. The reasons for such recommendations are many, but, by and large, they tend to stem from a study someone read about or saw reported in the news. “On the other hand, the number of crimes that are committed that have some sort of alcohol component related to them are massive — hundreds of thousands a year, if not more,” he said. In fact, he says, using cannabis for pain in lieu of NSAIDs, such as ibuprofen, is better for your kidneys.
Long-term health risks
Even heavy marijuana abuse can at worst cause schizophrenia in people with a history of mental illness. Alcohol is not only more addictive it also can cause more lasting damage to your health than cannabis. While excessive marijuana use can take a negative toll on your health many of these side effects can be reversible. “The main risk of cannabis is losing control of your cannabis intake,” Mark Kleiman, a drug policy expert at UCLA, said.
Alcohol versus pot
Alcohol is legal and can be purchased almost anywhere and everywhere. However, is available necessarily a sign that it’s better for you? It can cause mood swings and we’re all familiar with people who are “angry drunks.” The impact of alcohol can vary based on how much you’re using and how your body interacts with it. Cannabis can be addictive but this is more a psychological dependency than a physical one. It can be more habitual or emotional in nature and can be aided by therapy and not necessarily require outside intervention.
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It’s possible to develop an emotional and/or physical dependence on both substances. Because denial is common, you may feel like you don’t have a problem with drinking. You might not recognize how much you drink or how many problems in your life are related to alcohol use. Listen to relatives, friends or co-workers when they ask you to examine your drinking habits or to seek help.
Both weed and alcohol temporarily impair memory, and alcohol can cause blackouts by rendering the brain incapable of forming memories. The most severe long-term effects are seen in heavy, chronic, or binge users who begin using in their teens. On the other hand, low to moderate drinking — about one drink a day — has been linked with a lower risk of heart attack and stroke compared with abstention. James Nicholls, a director at Alcohol Research UK, told The Guardian that those findings should be taken with a grain of salt since “any protective effects tend to be canceled out by even occasional bouts of heavier drinking.” Close to half of all adults have tried marijuana at least once, making it one of the most widely used illegal drugs — yet research suggests that a relatively small percentage of people become addicted.
For others, drug addiction develops with exposure to prescribed medications or acquiring medications from a friend or relative who has been prescribed the medication, particularly with opioids. Not everyone reacts to marijuana, alcohol, or a combination of the two in the same manner, and many circumstances influence how a person reacts. Nonetheless, being alcoholic ketoacidosis wikipedia aware of the potential implications of mixing these medications is beneficial. If only one could be legalized, more than half of people would choose marijuana over alcohol. The topic of discussion seems to keep on resurfacing, with fresh research being published and more laws being passed to legalize the recreational and therapeutic use of marijuana.
While there can be the odd allergic reaction or bad interaction or even a child may inadvertently consume cannabis, there isn’t sufficient data to point towards any deaths caused by cannabis. Alcohol and cannabis are vastly different but often get lumped together because they are intoxicants. The way they make you feel may make them seem similar but their impact on your body and any lasting damage are not remotely the same. Cannabis addiction is surprisingly common, however, according to 2015 study. The immediate effects of weed can vary quite a bit from person to person. There are countless cannabis products on the market and a number of consumption options, from vaping to edibles.
In November, a group of the nation’s top cancer doctors issued a statement asking people to drink less. They cited strong evidence that drinking alcohol — as little as a glass of wine or beer a day — increases the risk of developing both pre- and postmenopausal breast cancer. Still, experts do have some thoughts on the matter, especially when addiction is concerned.
The bottom line in terms of brain health and overall well-being is to eliminate or reduce the use of both these substances. At first glance, it might seem that alcohol does the most damage to our brain health and general well-being because it is more widely used. Over 85% of American adults say they’ve consumed alcohol at some point in their lives, and nearly 70% say they’ve choosing an alcohol rehab treatment program had a drink in the past year, as reported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Compare that to just 18% of Americans who said they used marijuana in 2019, according to the CDC. Although not as widespread, the harmful effects of marijuana on the brain may be greater. Let’s take a closer look at some of the worst consequences of drinking and marijuana.
