Marijuana has a lower potential for abuse than other drugs that are subjected to the same restrictions, with scientific support for its use as a medical treatment, researchers from the US Food and Drug Administration say in documents supporting its reclassification as a Schedule III substance.

Marijuana is currently classified as Schedule I, reserved for the most dangerous controlled substances, including heroin and LSD. In 2022, President Joe Biden asked US Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and the attorney general to begin the administrative process of reviewing how marijuana is scheduled under federal law. HHS Assistant Secretary for Health Adm. Rachel Levine wrote a letter to the Drug Enforcement Administration in August in which she supported the reclassification to Schedule III, a list that includes “drugs with a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence” such as ketamine, testosterone and Tylenol with codeine.

Rescheduling marijuana could open up more avenues for research, allow cannabis businesses to bank more freely and openly, and have firms no longer subject to a 40-year-old tax code that disallows credits and deductions from income generated by sales of Schedule I and II substances.

  • tory@lemmy.world
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    10 months ago

    This article seems to imply that stopping heavy marijuana use can lead to withdrawal symptoms.

    Yeah, I’m calling bullshit on that.

    • wsweg@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      The body is going to react to anything that it stops getting after it has been getting it consistently. Caffeine is perfectly legal and I get bad migraines from quitting it.

    • Cracks_InTheWalls@sh.itjust.works
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      10 months ago

      Irritability, sleep problems, night sweats, appetite issues, etc. These are 100% withdrawl effects for some heavy or frequent cannabis users who stop cold turkey.

      Is it cocaine or heroin withdrawl? Absolutely not. But we don’t do anyone any favours pretending that people don’t experience these symptoms when stopping (though, on the other hand, not everyone does. Depends how heavy/long you’ve been imbibing and individual differences in body chemistry).

      • NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        Crazy vivid dreams after stopping long term use as well.

        Not necessarily a negative withdrawal effect, although the sudden vivid dreams can be extra scary if the dreams aren’t happy dreams

      • tory@lemmy.world
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        10 months ago

        That’s about it. I am getting a good amount of pushback from people who very much like the idea that being able to dream again and not being high are withdrawl.

        And sure, they’re all technically correct in the most pedantic way.