Marijuana, one of the most popular mind-altering drugs around the world, has a long and interesting history. Earliest documented references of this herb date back as early to 500 BC when it was used for medicinal purposes. Over the years, marijuana grew mainstream as a recreational drug, consumed in various forms by weed enthusiasts worldwide.
Political forces made this once legal drug, illegal in many countries. While we are in no position to indulge in a political discourse, we can’t help but be amazed at the massive following the drug has worldwide. But there are some facts about it that even the biggest potheads won’t know. Here are 12 interesting facts about marijuana that will probably blow your mind and leave you feeling a bit hazy (no drugs involved)!
1) Your favorite beer is cousins with your cush
You probably didn’t know this but the hops in your beer and marijuana in your blunt belong to the same family of flowering plants. We bet you’d enjoy your beer knowing this!
2) Weed might just cure cancer
While smoking kills, ingesting weed can hold clue to cancer cure. A scientific study revealed that marijuana could stop the spread or growth of many types of aggressive cancer.
3) Teenagers’ IQ drops if they smoke weed
A common myth associated with smoking weed is that it weakens your brain, and it is partly true. Provided you are a teen. Interestingly, adults don’t show a decline in their IQ if they are hooked to cannabis.
4) Weed was the first thing bought and sold online
You might think origins of online shopping might be in fashion or some other fast moving good. But interestingly, the very first e-commerce transaction was the sale of weed, done by Stanford students back in 1971! That said, some people may dispute that this one doesn’t count as the Internet was just used to arrange the meeting and not the actual purchase.
5) Shakespeare was a pothead
Folks claim weed boosts creativity and it might just be true. Several of William Shakespeare’s pipe fragments tested positive for marijuana residue. While this still doesn’t confirm that he was a pothead, but given his creativity, we’d like to believe so!
6) Icelanders are the biggest stoners
You might be tempted to think Jamaica or Netherlands may have the highest population percentage consuming marijuana but it’s actually Iceland with almost 18 % of its population reportedly using cannabis.
7) Pigs feed on marijuana in Bhutan
Right across our country’s border, weed grows wild and free. Yes, in Bhutan weed is more common than grass but not many smoke it. Instead, it is a popular feed for pigs.
8) Dying from a marijuana overdose is practically impossible
A pot smoker would theoretically have to smoke nearly 680 KGs of marijuana within about fifteen minutes to die of it. That’s a lot of weed!
9) Weed is a relatively safe and less addictive drug
Studies indicate that alcohol and smoking are more harmful than marijuana.Moreover, a cigarette has a 90% addiction rate while marijuana is even less addictive than coffee.
10) Weed is a danger to the environment
Forget your health, weed poses bigger risks to the ecology. For every pound of pot grown indoors, approximately 4,600 pounds of CO2 is released into the atmosphere!
11) Chocolates can give you a similar high as weed
Need an instant hit but can’t get your hands on marijuana? Try chocolates instead! Researchers have discovered that chocolate produces similar reactions in the brain as weed.
12) Weed was legal in India till 1985
You’d be surprised to know that a little over three decades ago, weed was sold and consumed openly in India. As a matter of fact, most state governments had their own retail shops to sell weed. It was 1985’s NDPS Act that put a ban on it under the American government’s pressure. Interestingly, many states in the US have begun to legalize weed and yet, in Indie it remains illegal.
There you have it, 12 hard to believe but totally true facts about weed. You can narrate these to your fellow stoner friends next time you’re all getting high!
PS: ScrollDroll does not condone any kind of substance abuse and illegal activity.