Netherlands

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Title
“Persistent cannabis users show neuropsychological decline from childhood to midlife”, based on results from the Dunedin study
05/16/2018

The Netherland’s attempt to divide markets into soft vs. hard drugs by allowing coffee shops to sell cannabis did not result in lower consumption of hard drugs. Overall it has been a social disaster.
The cannabis grown and sold today is not same drug as was available in the 1970s. The average THC has increased to more than 15%. Cannabis issue can clearly lead to addiction. The damage to the brain from chronic use is worse compared with chronic use of heroin. Among the negative effects of long-term cannabis use in adolescence include neuropsychological dysfunction, decline in IQ, short memory, among others.
Professor Madras focused on how cannabis smoking can affect the behavior and brains of children. Preclinical tests studies show that the use of cannabis before pregnancy may have adverse effects on future children.


Netherlands, madras, World Federation Against Drugs
These college students lost access to legal pot — and started getting better grades
07/25/2017

The research on more than 4,000 students, published in the Review of Economic Studies, found that those who lost access to legal marijuana showed substantial improvement in their grades. Specifically, those banned from cannabis cafes had a more than 5 percent increase in their odds of passing their courses. Low performing students benefited even more, which the researchers noted is particularly important because these students are at high-risk of dropping out. The researchers attribute their results to the students who were denied legal access to marijuana being less likely to use it and to suffer cognitive impairments (e.g., in concentration and memory) as a result.


academics, Netherlands, access, college graduation, education
5 Myths About Cannabis and Coffeeshops in the Netherlands
09/05/2016
  •  If you grow no more than five plants, you will not be prosecuted — but if police discover your plants, they can (and usually will) take all of them.
  • The most recent coffeeshop count in the Netherlands was 582, with about a third of them, 187, located in Amsterdam. Tourists who only visit Amsterdam can easily get the impression that Dutch cities have a coffeeshop on every corner, but this is far from the truth.
  • The proportion of Dutch national residents, ages 15 to 64, who have consumed cannabis at least once in their life is 24.1 percent, the European average for the same group is 24.8 percent. In France, a country with a very repressive cannabis policy, the number is no less than 40.9 percent. And a recent poll found that 43 percent of American adults have tried cannabis at some point. 
  • Consuming in public: This might have been true 20 or 30 years ago, but times have changed. If you smoke a joint on a terrace of a bar or restaurant, the staff will most likely ask you to put it out. Many cities, including Amsterdam, have introduced zones where you can be fined if you consume cannabis in public.

Netherlands, Myth
Coffee Shop FAQ
09/05/2016
  • Even a minor law infraction results in a coffee shop closure. It has been estimated, that from 1500 coffee shops in 2007, there are no more than 650 – 700 left in the whole Netherlands, with about a third of them in Amsterdam.
  • You should go inside a coffee shop, or smoke inside your home or a private garden. Thus, not in public view.

Netherlands
Hazy legality: how legal is Dutch weed really?
04/15/2016
  • The current laws mean I have to drive across the city transporting the weed and hash with no license to do so. It’s impossible to work normally this way, and I’m more scared of the police than the dealers I buy from.’
  • While Dutch policy allows coffee shops to sell cannabis, cultivation remains illegal.
  • ‘The current system, in which you can sell cannabis but not grow it, is unsustainable,’

Netherlands
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