Substance abuse is the harmful use of substances such as illicit drugs and alcohol that changes brain functions altering behavior, cognition, perception, and mood. Abusing substances leads to addiction characterized by strong desires to take the drug, difficulties controlling its use, and giving the drugs a higher priority than other activities and obligations. Some of the most abused substances include alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, benzodiazepines, and opioids among others. This essay will discuss the commonalities between alcohol and cannabis.
Cannabis and alcohol are two drugs with commonalities as they are classified as drugs and have had long histories. Both drugs are similar in terms of prohibition and legalization. Alcohol production, distribution, sales, and importation in the United States were banned until 1993, and currently, only adults can consume and purchase alcohol. Cannabis is currently prohibited, as only eight states have legalized it recreationally, and 29 states have legalized medical marijuana. Many lawmakers and advocates globally continue to fight state and federal laws that prohibit sale and production of cannabis. Alcohol and cannabis have mild-altering effects that occur because they are psychoactive, and have a negative impact on human health. Long-term effects of alcohol are various forms of cancer, cardiovascular disease, liver cirrhosis, impotence, and hepatitis among others (Caulkins, 2014) . Long-term effects of cannabis, on the other hand, are decreased testosterone level in men, the high testosterone level in females, respiratory disorders, increased blood pressure, and mouth, lungs, and throat cancer among others (Caulkins, 2014) .
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The uniqueness of alcohol and cannabis is that excessive consumption of alcohol kills, but there are no reported cases of cannabis-related deaths in thousands of years of cannabis history (Caulkins, 2014) . Cannabis is believed to have medical benefits by reducing inflammation throughout the body and helping bring the body into homeostasis when in crisis. Chronic consumption of alcohol causes disease in the brain and the liver, but chronic consumption of cannabis does not.
I would be faced with special ethical and legal concerns when dealing with clients with alcohol and cannabis use disorders. Ensuring principles of respect for autonomy, beneficence, justice, and nonmaleficence would be challenging because the clients are not in their right conscience (Toriello & Benshoff, 2003). Alcohol and cannabis cause addiction and recovering patients are not normal enough because drugs affect their cognitive reasoning. Ensuring ethical responsibilities of notifying clients of the testing and making reasonable efforts to obtain informed consent would be challenging in case they would be under influence of these drugs.
References
Caulkins, J. P. (2014). Is Marijuana Safer than Alcohol? Insights from Users’ Self-Reports.
Toriello, P. J., & Benshoff, J. J. (2003). Substance abuse counselors and ethical dilemmas: The influence of recovery and education level. Journal of Addictions & Offender Counseling , 23 (2), 83-98.
