The Reality of Marijuana
Monday, March 31st, 2008
What Is It?
Marijuana is a mixture of the dried and shredded leaves, stems, seeds, and flowers of the hemp plant. The mixture can be green, brown, or gray. Hemp’s scientific name is Cannabis sativa.
A bunch of leaves seems harmless, right? But think again. Marijuana has a chemical in it called tetrahydrocannabinol. Better known as THC. A lot of other chemicals are found in marijuana too-about 400 of them, some of which can cause lung cancer. But THC is the main active ingredient. [1]
What Are the Common Street Names?
There are more than 200 slang terms for marijuana from city to city and from neighborhood to neighborhood. Some common names are: pot, grass, herb, weed, Mary Jane, reefer, skunk, boom, gangster, kif, chronic, and ganja. [2]