Support for the legalization of marijuana has reached an all-time high—even as studies sound the alarm about its dangers. Here’s why you should not use it.
The emergency room doctor wrote: “Patient reports that she was smoking marijuana, then began to feel nauseous, complains of abdominal pain and vomiting. CT and ultrasound ordered, evaluate liver, gallbladder, pancreas.”
As a sonographer, I have seen multiple patients come into the hospital for marijuana-related maladies. Many are repeat patients, who come into the emergency department routinely for the same issue.
They don’t seem to realize the damage that they are inflicting on their bodies by continued use of marijuana.
What is marijuana?
Marijuana comes from the cannabis plant, which contains the mind-altering chemical THC. It is the most widely used illicit drug.
The number of Americans who use marijuana almost daily surpassed those who drink alcohol that often, according to a 2022 study (“Changes in Self-Reported Cannabis Use in the United States From 1979 to 2022”).
There are multiple slang names for the drug, including “pot,” “weed” and “Mary Jane.”
“Marijuana is smoked using pipes, bongs, paper-wrapped joints, blunts and other devices . . . [and] can also be consumed through dozens of different products including e-cigarettes, candy, brownies and other baked goods, capsules, beverages and many more” (“Marijuana and Lung Health”).
The legal landscape
At the federal level, use and possession of marijuana is still illegal in the United States (though it is being rescheduled from the most restrictive Schedule I to Schedule III to expand medical research).
However, 87 percent of Americans support its legalization—either for medical use only or medical and recreational use (Pew Research). That public support has caused a dramatic shift at the state level. As of July 2025, 24 states and the District of Columbia have legalized both medical and recreational marijuana.
The legalization trend has been seen in other countries as well. About a dozen countries have legalized its recreational use, including Canada, Chile, Germany, Luxembourg, Mexico and South Africa.
A burgeoning industry
The U.S. marijuana industry has grown from $12.7 billion in 2016 to almost $43 billion in 2024—and is projected to keep climbing.
“More than a decade after states began legalizing recreational marijuana, businesses are enticing customers with unproven health claims, while largely escaping rigorous oversight” (New York Times, Jan. 25, 2025).
Lynn Silver, M.D., a senior adviser for the Public Health Institute, is very alarmed. “The industry has been very effective at transmitting this idea of cannabis as a safe, natural wellness product. There’s little awareness of just how much the product has actually changed, of how industrialized and increasingly hazardous it’s become” (ibid.).
Increased potency
Ironically, at the same time that marijuana has become more mainstream, it has become more potent and dangerous.
The Yale School of Medicine reports, “Over the last several decades, the THC content of cannabis has changed substantially. In 1995, the average THC content in cannabis seized by the Drug Enforcement Administration was about 4%. By 2017, it had risen to 17% and continues to increase. Beyond the plant, a staggering array of other cannabis products with an even higher THC content like dabs, oils, and edibles are readily available—some as high as 90%” (“Marijuana: Rising THC Concentrations in Cannabis Can Pose Devastating Health Risks”).
More are using
Use of marijuana has dramatically increased over the last couple of decades. The 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health reported 22.3 percent of Americans 12 and older say they used it in the past year, 16 percent in the past month. Young adults have the highest percentage, with 25.2 percent using marijuana in the past month.
But even older adults—65 and older—are increasingly using marijuana. A JAMA Internal Medicine article reported the percent of users in that group jumped from less than 1 percent in 2005 to 4.2 percent in 2018 to 7 percent in 2023.
Health risks of marijuana
The expanding legalization of marijuana—and its promotion by the marijuana industry and popular culture—have led many to assume using it is harmless fun that doesn’t hurt anybody.
Ask yourself honestly: Does it seem like using marijuana is compatible with being a holy, sanctified, pure child of God who has been called out of the world?
Many people—especially young people—no longer see it as risky behavior. But the reality is very different.
Here are a few examples of marijuana’s negative effects on the body:
Lungs: Like tobacco smoke, marijuana is an irritant to the throat and lungs. A 2022 study that looked at chest CT scans of marijuana smokers and tobacco-only smokers found that rates of emphysema and airway inflammation were significantly higher in the marijuana smokers.
Smoking marijuana has been found to cause chronic bronchitis and injure the cell linings of the large airways. Marijuana smokers can have “symptoms such as chronic cough, phlegm production, wheeze and acute bronchitis,” among other symptoms. “Marijuana can harm more than just the lungs and respiratory system—it can also affect the immune system and the body’s ability to fight disease” (“Marijuana and Lung Health”).
Heart: The CDC reports that “marijuana can make the heart beat faster and can make blood pressure higher immediately after use. It could also lead to increased risk of stroke, heart disease, and other vascular diseases” (“Marijuana and Heart Health”).
In June 2025 Heart, the journal of the British Cardiovascular Society, published an analysis of the medical data of 200 million people between 19 and 59. Those who used cannabis had a 29 percent higher risk for heart attacks and a 20 percent higher risk for stroke.
Brain: Studies show that marijuana has “an immediate impact on thinking, attention, memory, coordination, movement, and time perception.” Marijuana has also been proven to negatively affect brain development. Young people especially are susceptible to the drug’s harmful effects and can suffer permanent brain damage and permanent IQ loss (“Cannabis and Brain Health” and SAMHSA).
Marijuana can impair a user’s ability to drive safely. When smoked, the drug stays in a person’s system even longer than alcohol and can impair the user’s driving ability up to four hours. Cannabis edibles can impair driving even longer, up to eight hours.
According to a study published in the American Journal of Public Health, crash fatalities involving cannabis rose from 9 percent in 2000 to 21.5 percent in 2018 (“Trends in Cannabis Involvement in Motor Vehicle Crash Fatalities”).
Mental health issues: A growing body of research is also finding that young people who smoke marijuana are at an increased risk of developing certain psychiatric disorders, including delusions, paranoia, schizophrenia and other forms of psychosis.
A 15-year Swedish study, for instance, “found that those who had tried cannabis by age 18 were 2.4 times more likely to be diagnosed with schizophrenia than those who had not and the risk of this diagnosis increased with the frequency of cannabis use” (“Cannabis Use and the Risk of Developing a Psychotic Disorder”).
Some studies have also looked at violence and marijuana use. For example, “A Review of Cases of Marijuana and Violence” presented “14 cases of violence with chronic marijuana users that highlight reoccurring consequences of: marijuana induced paranoia (exaggerated, unfounded distrust) and marijuana induced psychosis (radical personality change, loss of contact with reality).”
Reproductive issues: A study reported in the September 2025 issue of Nature Communications found that marijuana can damage unfertilized eggs in female ovaries. Researchers are concerned that this could lead to infertility, miscarriage and possible genetic defects in babies.
Marijuana use by pregnant women can cause stillbirth, preterm birth, and growth and development issues. And mothers who use marijuana while breastfeeding can pass THC and other chemicals on to their babies, thus affecting brain development.
This is not an exhaustive list. For example, marijuana use has also been associated with certain types of cancer (“Cannabis and Cancer”).
The bottom line is this: Every system in your body interacts with the other systems. You cannot damage one organ without damaging others as well. The human body has a remarkable ability to repair and heal itself—to a certain point. If we repeatedly engage in behavior that assaults our health, eventually we will reach the point where our bodies are permanently damaged.
Addiction: Marijuana is much more addictive than many people believe. A February 2025 JAMA article leads with the blunt statement, “The facts are clear: cannabis is addictive, its use is on the rise, and those affected by cannabis use disorder face a heightened risk of premature death.” It reports on a study that followed more than 100,000 people diagnosed with cannabis use disorder (i.e. addiction to cannabis) and found their rate of death to be 6 times the rate of the general population (“Evidence of Elevated Mortality in Cannabis Use Disorder”).
What about medical marijuana?
The FDA has approved a few medications derived from marijuana for specific illnesses, but this in no way means that self-prescribed “medical marijuana” is safe.
Developing medications from the whole marijuana plant or its crude extracts has challenges. It can contain hundreds of unknown active chemicals. As well, it can be difficult to get accurate and consistent doses.
Spiritual effects of marijuana
Clearly, the use of marijuana is detrimental to our physical health, but is this at all related to our spiritual health? Consider a few relevant passages.
- 1 Corinthians 6:19-20. The context is sexual immorality, but we can apply this to other kinds of immorality and destructive behavior as well: “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit [which] is in you, [which] you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”
- Romans 12:1-2: “I beseech you therefore, brethren . . . present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” We are to use our bodies in service of God’s plan and will. If this is not our focus, then we need to reevaluate our priorities.
- 1 Thessalonians 4:4: “That each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor” (English Standard Version). We must have self-control.
Is using marijuana really compatible with being a holy, sanctified, pure child of God who has been called out of the world?
How to stop using marijuana
If you now believe that you should stop using marijuana, how do you break this habit (or even addiction) that has become ingrained in your life?
You must be willing to put in the work to overcome this. You have to want to stop more than you want to continue. Prayer, fasting and Bible study are essential tools if you are to overcome addiction.
You can also seek counsel with a minister or trusted friend who will hold you accountable. Therapists and support groups can also be an encouraging resource.
Don’t put yourself in situations where you are likely to face additional temptation. If your group of friends is likely to be engaged in this behavior, you need to be willing to remove yourself from this situation so that you won’t feel additional peer pressure to sin.
Here are a few articles that can help:
- “Confronting Addiction.”
- “Freedom From Addiction.”
- “Smoking.”
- “There’s a Proverb for That: ‘I’m Addicted. Help Me!’”
Finally, we must always keep this in mind: We have a merciful Father who wants us to repent and turn to Him, and He will help us in doing so. Notice these verses:
- 1 Corinthians 10:13: “No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”
- 1 John 1:9: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Breaking habits and overcoming addiction take immense work, but when you are successful, your physical health—and your spiritual health—will be immeasurably improved.
Given the growing body of research regarding the risks of marijuana—and biblical admonition—we urge our readers to completely avoid using marijuana.
