Marijuana is the most used drug across the world and receives a big amount of attention because of the discussion about legalising.
In fact, after alcohol marijuana is the most popular mood altering drug used worldwide, with an estimated 22.5 million people using it every day.

Marijuana comes from the dried leaves of three different plants, all with different strength. The hemp plant Cannabis Sativa is stronger because of its height and gives a head high, Cannabis Indica, which provides the skunk version, is a short plant and gives more of a muscle relaxing high, while Cannabis Ruderalis grows in colder climates.
The name marijuana comes from the Mexican language and has derived from the pronunciation of Mary Jane in Spanish. Cannabis is the scientific term for marijuana and is mostly used in the US.

Marijuana has over 400 different ingredients and the main one is THC (delta 9 tetrhydrocannabinol) and is the chemical that produces the mind-altering effects, which makes the brain release dopamine, which is what happens when we are happy.
THC can cause side effects such as loss of inhibition and a distorted sense of time, as well as an increased visual sensitivity and intensified imagination.
Long term use often leads to extreme time distortion and paranoia.

In the mid-1800s some countries sold marijuana on prescription for certain illnesses such as nausea, rheumatism and labour pains, but this came to a halt in the 1940s.
In our time Canada is the only country that allows Marijuana as medicine, while Holland is the only country which allows the use of Marijuana, attracting a lot of tourists every year.

Marijuana is mostly smoked in a cigarette with tobacco which is famously called a joint, in a pipe or in a water pipe, often referred to as a bong. Some hollow out cigars and replace the tobacco with marijuana and make what we call blunts. While these are the most common ways of using marijuana some also mix it into foods, such as muffins and brownies, or brew it as a tea.

Although many believe marijuana should be legalised there are many dangerous sides to this drug, some more fatal than others.
While marijuana is less addictive than other drugs it has often proven to lead users towards other drugs that have a stronger effect, such as cocaine and ecstasy.
Herein lies the problem many people chose to ignore and while marijuana itself might not be very dangerous, the decisions made around it can be.