Japan to boost response to quasi-legal drugs amid rising health fears

This just will lead more arrest for youths that unknowingly already use that substance which is still legal now, by the time it become illegal many of them still have it or use it.

Is this because Japanese government prefer people to be high using alcohol than other substance?

https://www.npr.org/2022/08/25/1119480772/japan-is-urging-its-youth-to-drink-more-alcohol

In 2014, a man under the influence of such drugs drove a car into pedestrians in Tokyo's Ikebukuro district, killing a woman.

Senior driver still more dangerous than any other drivers in Japan.

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2019/05/18/national/crime-legal/police-grill-87-year-old-driver-tokyo-crash-left-mother-daughter-dead/

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2023/03/02/national/crime-legal/japan-elderly-drivers-record-fatalities/

The ministry went on to strengthen its crackdown on the drugs, and it emerged in July 2015 that no stores were selling the drugs.

This is still fresh in my mind, so I'm surprised to hear of the proliferation of these new THC analogs. Are they really an analog of THC, or is that just a way of describing what they are? And how is this popping up again after they managed to stop the stores 8 years ago?

These stores/drugs show that people in Japan want to use THC. But as is usually the case with the war on drugs, the effects of trying to make sure people don't do the drug, are worse on society than the actual drugs themselves. What is this "THC analog" doing to the kids? There is so much research into what THC does (conclusion: mostly harmless), but is there any research at all into what these analogs do?

… have been confirmed to be more harmful than cannabis itself …

According to Health Canada, long-term cannabis use can harm your:

memory

concentration

intelligence (IQ)

ability to think and make decisions

Other long-term effects of smoking cannabis are similar to the effects of smoking tobacco. These effects can include risks to lung health, such as:

bronchitis

lung infections

chronic (long-term) cough

increased mucus buildup in the chest

Short-term effects on your brain can include:

confusion

sleepiness (fatigue)

impaired ability to remember, concentrate, pay attention, react quickly

anxiety, fear or panic

Short term effects on your body can also include:

if smoking, damaged blood vessels caused by the smoke

decreased blood pressure, which can cause people to faint

increased heart rate, which can be dangerous for people with heart conditions and can lead to an increased risk of heart attack

Source: Health Canada, https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/drugs-medication/cannabis/health-effects/effects.html

And yet, even with all that, it's mostly harmless.

It's why Canada legalized it - they realized that the problems caused by illegality were worse than the drug itself.

Cigarette smoking is far more deadly, yet nothing is ever done. Legalize marijuana, tax it, make some money and everyone will be happier.

These politicians really need to smoke a bong!

have been confirmed to be more harmful than cannabis itself, 

Oooh yes, big, bad, scary cannabis. It's real bad for you .

From another JT article today:

[... more states are legalizing cannabis for medical or recreational use, and there are efforts to allow exceptions for cannabis in smoke-free laws.

These changes mean an increasing number of people are likely to get exposed to cannabis smoke. But how safe is direct and secondhand cannabis smoke?

I am a primary care doctor and researcher in a state where cannabis is now legal for medical and recreational use. My colleagues and I were interested in how opinions about tobacco and cannabis smoke safety have been changing during this time of growing cannabis use and marketing.

In our survey of over 5,000 U.S. adults in 2017, 2020 and 2021, we found that people increasingly felt that exposure to cannabis smoke was safer than tobacco smoke. In 2017, 26% of people thought that it was safer to smoke a cannabis joint than a cigarette daily. In 2021, over 44% chose cannabis as the safer option. People were similarly more likely to rate secondhand cannabis smoke as being “completely safe” compared with tobacco smoke, even for vulnerable groups such as children and pregnant women.

Despite these views, emerging research raises concerns about the health effects of cannabis smoke exposure.

Do opinions on cannabis match the science?

Decades of research and hundreds of studies have linked tobacco smoke to multiple types of cancer and to cardiovascular disease. However, far fewer studies have been done on the long-term effects of cannabis smoke. Since cannabis remains illegal at the federal level, it is more challenging for scientists to study.

It has been particularly hard to study health outcomes that may take a long time and heavier exposure to develop. Recent reviews of research on cannabis and cancer or cardiovascular disease found those studies inadequate because they contained relatively few people with heavy exposure, didn’t follow people for a long enough time or didn’t properly account for cigarette smoking.

Many advocates point to the lack of clear findings on negative health effects of cannabis smoke exposure as proof of its harmlessness. However, my colleagues and I feel that this is an example of the famous scientific quote that “absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.”

Scientists have identified hundreds of chemicals in both cannabis and tobacco smoke, and they share many of the same carcinogens and toxins. Combustion of tobacco and cannabis, whether by smoking or vaping, also releases particles that can be inhaled deep into the lungs and cause tissue damage.

Animal studies on the effects of secondhand tobacco and cannabis smoke show similar concerning effects on the cardiovascular system. These include impairments in blood vessel dilation, increased blood pressure and reduced heart function.

Though more research is needed to determine the risk of lung cancer, heart attacks and strokes posed by cannabis smoke, what is already known has raised concerns among public health agencies.]

Though more research is needed to determine the risk of lung cancer

There has never been a case of lung cancer linked to cannabis.

heart attacks and strokes posed by cannabis smoke

I don't recall ever seeing any of these either.

And let's not forget, it's literally a medicine.

This subject shows how I’ll inform most are on this subject. Look up alcohol related deaths compared THC related deaths. Most still believed the propaganda that was associated with cannabis. It been used thought out Asia for millennia and Asia was force to make it illegal where they had no social of heath problems associated with the use.

And yet, even with all that, it's mostly harmless.

It's why Canada legalized it - they realized that the problems caused by illegality were worse than the drug itself.

That's also why the US legalized alcohol after the 1930s, yet at least alcoholics don't go around saying alcohol is mostly harmless. You want to smoke cannabis, go ahead. It's your life. Same with alcohol. But pumping it as "harmless" reeks of rationalization, and sends a bad message to kids.

That's also why the US legalized alcohol after the 1930s, yet at least alcoholics don't go around saying alcohol is mostly harmless.

Because alcohol is a hard drug, and most definitely not mostly harmless.

As usual, Japan taking more Ls.

You know what - let them cook. Let's watch the Japanese government ban more THC analogs, leading to the proliferation of some new legal chemical that could actually kill people, unlike cannabis.

People will find ways to get high no matter what, and people will find ways to create new legal highs to meet that demand, no matter what. They cannot stop it. All they can do is try to save face.

The Japanese government routinely puts out warnings to their nationals abroad that if they smoke pot overseas, they can prosecuted as though they're doing it in Japan. These people are coping so hard and engaging in such insane mental gymnastics, it really is looking like they're the ones that need to be placed in padded cells.

I hope Japan never has to suffer through the social problem of drug abuse the way Canada currently is. It's sad to see the decline, with dugs infesting not just cities like Vancouver, but small and formerly charming towns in the mountains.

But pumping it as "harmless" reeks of rationalization, and sends a bad message to kids.

Canada disagrees, it's why they took the sensible approach instead of your guys' lingering Reefer Madness mentality (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhQlcMHhF3w).

@Strangerland

There has never been a case of lung cancer linked to cannabis.

Should you take advice from Strangerland or the experts? I’m going to choose the experts.

According to the Mayo Clinic, smoking marijuana may be associated with an increased risk of developing lung cancer. Additional research is needed to fully understand the long-term health effects of marijuana smoking and how it affects a person's risk for lung cancer.

However, researchers know that marijuana smoke contains many of the same harmful chemicals and compounds found in tobacco smoke. The issue is made more complex because many marijuana users also smoke tobacco, so it can be difficult to determine the cause of diseases they develop. For these reasons, physician researchers believe there still is cause for concern about smoking marijuana and lung health.

https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/hometown-health/speaking-of-health/marijuana-and-lung-cancer-risk

According to the Mayo Clinic, smoking marijuana may be associated with an increased risk of developing lung cancer.

And yet, my original comment stands:

There has never been a case of lung cancer linked to cannabis.

However, researchers know that marijuana smoke contains many of the same harmful chemicals and compounds found in tobacco smoke.

And yet, has never caused cancer.

Sorry, was I supposed to take your false equivalency as less than false?

Just to add clarity to the article: the altered cannabinoids which are already illegal are HHC and THC-O. One is hydrogenated and the other is acetylised.

The other ones they are talking about are mostly minor cannabinoids which are naturally occurring in hemp, and legal because of the 2018 hemp farming laws. These are gradually being made illegal (THCp and THCh for example). Then as the govt makes them illegal, hydrogenated and acetylised forms of these minor cannabinoids (some of which have 33x the CB1 binding affinity of THC) are popping up. Just change the T to an H or add an O on the end. THCp-O, HHCp, etc).

Essentially through making the original unadulterated forms so illegal, the ‘tweaked’ (and far more potent) variants of THC are getting ever more convoluted, with more unknown effects (which usually just amount to a longer half-life or more intense high).

Given the fact the tax agency is ‘encouraging’ young people to self-harm by drinking more alcohol, which is taxed at a very low rate in Japan, it seems that legalising cannabis and capitalising on the carte-blanche tax status to set an incredibly high tax rate would be the smart move here. But that’s likely to require pressure from US export lobbyists because of how effective the anti-drug rhetoric has been.

And the list of dangerous drugs will continue growing and growing. Humanity and other animals have been drugging themselves for ages, and this will continue. Laws and regulations may provide some deterrents but animal nature cannot be stopped. Few people accept that we are evolved monkeys.

Just to add clarity to the article: the altered cannabinoids which are already illegal are HHC and THC-O. One is hydrogenated and the other is acetylised.

The other ones they are talking about are mostly minor cannabinoids which are naturally occurring in hemp, and legal because of the 2018 hemp farming laws. These are gradually being made illegal (THCp and THCh for example). Then as the govt makes them illegal, hydrogenated and acetylised forms of these minor cannabinoids (some of which have 33x the CB1 binding affinity of THC) are popping up. Just change the T to an H or add an O on the end. THCp-O, HHCp, etc).

Interesting. So they're different from those 脱法ハーブ that they made illegal a few years back, as these actually are THC related. But with zero research, which is scary. I wonder what these people are putting into themselves.

@Strangerland

It's why Canada legalized it

No, Canada legalized it to profit off of it. Canada did not have to impose taxes on it. They chose to use its residents’ cannabis use as a revenue source.

Laws and regulations may provide some deterrents but animal nature cannot be stopped.

The law is an extremely ineffective solution to a health issue. Even if cannabis were bad for you (again, mostly harmless), it would be better to make it legal and focus the money spent on drug enforcement and imprisonment on rehabilitation and education.

There is precedence for this.

No, Canada legalized it to profit off of it.

That's a very binary mindset you have, as if it couldn't be both.

But if you really want to get down to the "why", the stated reason was to get rid of the black market, where it was easier for kids to buy than alcohol, which is regulated. It was the big selling point when they original campaign happened.

Notice how it is directly related to my assertion that Canada realized that the effects of making the drug illegal were worse on society than the actual effects of the drug itself?

Canada did not have to impose taxes on it. They chose to use its residents’ cannabis use as a revenue source.

Yeah, why not, since it's mostly harmless?

In July, the ministry did on-the-spot inspections of three stores in the prefectures of Kanagawa, Osaka and Tokushima and ordered they cease sales of the technically legal drugs.

How is this not technically considered harassment of a business functioning within the boundaries of the law?

As usual, the Japanese philosophy seems to be: over-tax, over-regulate, over-fine. Just as they did during Covid.

When will the young people wake up to the fact that these parasitic politicians and business leaders are poisoning the well for them, making their future adult lives harder? Stop being cowards and revolt!

@Strangerland

… the stated reason was to get rid of the black market, …

Again, they could have gotten rid of the black market by simply legalizing it without imposing taxes. They basically used the black market fear to capture gullible suckers like you while creating an additional revenue stream for themselves.

Again, they could have gotten rid of the black market by simply legalizing it without imposing taxes.

They could have. But they also saw that since it's mostly harmless, they can make taxes off it.

This is what Canadians wanted you realize.

They basically used the black market fear to capture gullible suckers like you

I wasn't in Canada then, and I'm not Canadian yet.

creating an additional revenue stream for themselves.

Yeah. Duh. It's an excellent stream of revenue, it's one of the reasons Canadians supported it - there was no tax revenue coming from the black market whatsoever.

How is this not technically considered harassment of a business functioning within the boundaries of the law?

There are laws against selling those "dangerous drugs", and I would imagine that these shops are probably skirting a grey area around it, whereby wording and actions are very specific so as not to tread into illegal territory. If this is the case, due to the proximity to illegal actions, the police would have some justification of visiting these shops to make sure they are working within the confines of the law.

Japanese government:

so there's this new vaccine - it won't protect you from getting infected with Covid, it may afford you some meager immune protection from Covid symptoms (the extent to which is still hotly contested), has a significant risk of causing injuries, the most of any vaccine in recent history, was totally rushed out, and is also totally unnecessary for young/healthy people that can recover naturally and gain superior natural immunity... So we're going to use your taxpayer yen to buy enough so everyone can get five shots AT LEAST!

Also Japanese government:

THC is a social problem! Five year prison punishment for a victimless crime! And don't even think about leaving the country to do it either - we'll find out somehow!!!

@wolfshime

The Japanese government routinely puts out warnings to their nationals abroad that if they smoke pot overseas, they can prosecuted as though they're doing it in Japan. 

Ive heard about it too. Ridiculous how far they go to try to control its citizens who lived abroad. Take care of own land and people and leave those outside. Let them enjoy freedom they have wherever they are.

By the way, how about CBD without THC inside? Is this fine or also count as drug ?

...who live abroad not lived...

By the way, how about CBD without THC inside? Is this fine or also count as drug ?

Nope. CBD with zero THC or THC analogs is definitely not a crime.

There's a Japanese guy that runs a company called Chillaxy in both Bangkok and Tokyo. They sell CBD products such as vapes and gummies. Support the cause brother!

quote: allow exceptions for cannabis in smoke-free law.

I expect my air to be smoke-free. That goes for tobacco, weed, bay leaves or whatever you want to smoke. I don't care what you inhale or inject, but go stink out your own environment.

Stranger: it not harmless drug. There is serious Heath concern surrounding the use of smoking compare to oral consumption. That said if you compare the process of teeth whitening to oral cannabis use and you will find that the teeth whitening process in far more dangerous to one heath then the oral or consumption of cannabis.

Nope. CBD with zero THC or THC analogs is definitely not a crime.

I recently read that Tokyo is one of the largest CBD consuming cities in the world.

Stranger: it not harmless drug.

"Mostly harmless".

There is serious Heath concern surrounding the use of smoking compare to oral consumption.

In Canada, they sell cannabis edibles and cannabis drinks in the cannabis shops. And many people use vaporizers, which does not burn the cannabis, but rather heats it to the point that the THC and cannabinoids become a vapor, rather than smoke.

The Japanese government routinely puts out warnings to their nationals abroad that if they smoke pot overseas, they can prosecuted as though they're doing it in Japan. 

As I understand it, they can't legally prosecute them. And when you read the wording of those signs, they don't say one can be prosecuted for consuming overseas, instead they try to make it implied, because legally, they cannot do anything.

I recently read that Tokyo is one of the largest CBD consuming cities in the world.

Nice. CBD is very underrated. Not sure how I feel about it's capability to provide pain-relief or anti-depressive characteristics, but it is the most effective sleep-aid I have ever used. The melatonin industry is about to get rocked.

[ Decades of research and hundreds of studies have linked tobacco smoke to multiple types of cancer and to cardiovascular disease. However, far fewer studies have been done on the long-term effects of cannabis smoke. Since cannabis remains illegal at the federal level, it is more challenging for scientists to study.

Many advocates point to the lack of clear findings on negative health effects of cannabis smoke exposure as proof of its harmlessness. However, my colleagues and I feel that this is an example of the famous scientific quote that “absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.”

Scientists have identified hundreds of chemicals in both cannabis and tobacco smoke, and they share many of the same carcinogens and toxins. Combustion of tobacco and cannabis, whether by smoking or vaping, also releases particles that can be inhaled deep into the lungs and cause tissue damage.

Animal studies on the effects of secondhand tobacco and cannabis smoke show similar concerning effects on the cardiovascular system. These include impairments in blood vessel dilation, increased blood pressure and reduced heart function. ]

The government is trying to conflate actual dangerous chemical drugs like ‘spice’, which is just any green plant matter sprayed with a plethora of dangerous chemicals ( mostly made in China ) with the actual cannabis plant that humans have been using safety since well, forever. Spice and a salad bowl of other nasty products, have become a scourge now in places like the UK and New Zealand , especially with homeless people who have fallen so far that they just want to get as messed up as humanly possible that reality fades away. BUT these products are very different from THC, CBD , CBN or CBG or any other products gaining acceptance around the world for their potential health and environmental benefits. There’s been a few isolated cases of people getting head spins and panicking from jumping too hard on these certain products ( THCp for one ) , taken to hospital, and the govt. has used these isolated cases to once again bring down the curtain of fear, low resolution thinking and public fear. Perfectamundo!

It’s very clever of Japan to try and group drugs like Spice and cannabinoids all together in the attempt to push a narrative and resist the green wave that currently sweeping the world. Elderly people can die in pain, opioids can be pushed, cancers can get worse, pesticide-free hemp alternatives to paper, fabric, building materials, compost, even food can all go to hell for all they are concerned. The fact that it could revitalize regional regions, get young people involved in farming with the older generation and make life a little bit more bearable for those that choose (as adults) to partake is also just well, unthinkable. It’s still reefer madness here in 2023.

Wonder how long they will hold out? Pig headed stubbornness and a complete unwillingness to consider all the facts on the table will be on show over the following few years. You can’t even really have the conversations to get the ball rolling with these types who have made up their mind either.

Either way, we will get to see exactly how much the power base actually care for their own people I believe. Whether they will deny an entire generation of the ability to think and make choices for themselves, deny dying industries and communities a lifeline and sit back and happily watch the scourge of alcoholism and tobacco do the job of the grim reaper.

Reaper Madness!

ah yes, the eternal game of drug war wack-a-mole continues. No mention of decriminalizing marijuana to actually deal with this issue. so stubborn...

It's only a matter of time before the flames of illegal drugs that are burning most other nations reach Japan if not already, others have been fighting this war for centuries with no end in sight.

China is now the largest if not the only mass producer of Fentanyl and it is killing people on the streets of the west daily.

Actually it's illegal to possess cannabis with a THC percentage higher than the legal limit

There is no legal limit on the THC content, only the amount of cannabis a person can hold.

It help prevent jet lag and sedate making flying more comfortable for all passengers then being seated next to person drinking alcohol with their revolting smell and their toxicities behavior. Check out video on YouTube on drunks on flights. This preventable behavior can be controlled by banding alcohol and and a breath test prior to boarding.

ZORG

There's no such thing as legal drugs in Japan

There are tens of thousands of legal drugs in Japan. I take about six of them three times a day for my cancer treatment.

There is too much whataboutism in this post. Smoking cannabis in Japan is not very widespread. Japan will not legalize cannabis any time soon.

Pathetic actions. Legalise marijuana now and regulate supply. It removes the criminal element and it causes far few problems than alcohol does.

And available 24/7 365 days a year. That needs to be looked at too. I wouldn't have a clue where to get this "quasi-legal" stuff, but alcohol on the other hand.......

Because alcohol is a hard drug, and most definitely not mostly harmless.

Canada disagrees, it's why they took the sensible approach instead of your guys' lingering Reefer Madness mentality 

Hardly a sensible approach given the decline of Canada and the drug abuse epidemic of the past 10 years or so. Quite concerning, especially as I have family there. So far as "my guys" or Reefer Madness, I have no idea who or what you are referring to. I said you are free to use it - but encouraging it and falsely claiming it's harmless will hurt others.

What about when Japanese celebs are caught with kokain? or kannybus? Will the new laws apply to them or will they continue to get suspended sentences?

Here is a list of people who have no credibility on the topic of cannabis:

Making out a list of illogical, irrational personal considerations is not an argument, it is just an excuse you are trying to use when out of arguments.

If you smoke too much weed though, you end up thinking Big Pharma are out to get you. Just you. Cos you're that important.

If you smoke too much weed though, you end up thinking Big Pharma are out to get you. Just you. Cos you're that important.

No, technically they are out to get money.

It's called business, Paustovsky - this should be relatively simple to understand.

It's why Canada legalized it - they realized that the problems caused by illegality were worse than the drug itself.

Let's at least try to stop and slow the flooding before just leaving some compartments flooded.

Cigarette smoking is far more deadly, yet nothing is ever done. Legalize marijuana, tax it, make some money and everyone will be happier.

Cigarettes are being "pumped" out in Japanese society as far as I can tell. The only reason we leave alcohol alone is because by the time we got around to trying to stop it, it's too big to be stopped without causing excessive pain, so now we live with it. Without cannabis, it might even be the optimal choice for Canada or the Dutch, but it's not necessarily true anywhere else.

We don't need to add another chemical (or chemical family) to the list of tumors we really should be excising but have to leave alone because it has gotten too big.

It's called business, Paustovsky - this should be relatively simple to understand.

So what you're saying is, anyone who wants to make a profit (everyone) is quite content to harm their customers in the pursuit of it. You wouldn't be able to leave the house, which might collapse on you, if you felt that.

You are literally the argument for maintaining the status quo on marijuana in Japan.

So what you're saying is, anyone who wants to make a profit (everyone) is quite content to harm their customers in the pursuit of it. You wouldn't be able to leave the house, which might collapse on you, if you felt that.

You are literally the argument for maintaining the status quo on marijuana in Japan.

No, and what you typed out is actually just incomprehensible bad faith nonsense. Like what? Of course some companies behave properly and with respect for ethical business philosophy while others don't. Some sit somewhere in between.

Ford makes some good automobiles like the Focus. It's a good car. They also made the Pinto. Does that make all of their products bad? No, but it's a stain on their reputation they have to live with, and one that motivates us not to engage in blind consumerism or trust of large corporate entities again.

Also what does anything you said have to do with cannabis?

Good!

No need for that mess here.

Iv seen the shops popping up here in Tokyo and it really made me nervous they were going to stay.

Just say no!

Winners don’t take drugs.

If there is enough THC to be analyzed then prosecution will follow.

Winners don’t take drugs.

Lots and lots and lots and lots of winners smoke cannabis. It's really quite normalized right now. Some sport leagues don't even test for it anymore, as they want athletes to be able to use it for painkiller instead of opioids.

"As the Japanese government has been very reluctant to issue cultivation licenses, there were only 27 licensed cultivators as of 31 December 2022. In other words, the market for cannabis plants and their products is virtually non-existent in Japan."

"Under the current Cannabis Control Act in Japan, the possession, transfer, acceptance, importation and exportation of cannabis plants and their products are prohibited."

"In recent years, CBD products or CBD as a raw material have been imported from foreign countries and distributed in the Japanese market. It is legal to import into and distribute CBD products in Japan as long as they are made exclusively from mature stems or seeds of cannabis plants and do not contain any ingredient made from other regulated parts (such as leaves, flower heads, resin or immature stems) of cannabis plants."

https://practiceguides.chambers.com/practice-guides/medical-cannabis-cannabinoid-regulation-2023/japan/trends-and-developments

Hemp is defined as any part of the cannabis sativa plant with no more than 0.3% of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

"Hemp-derived food products are hitting new highs in Japan as more people seek healthier lifestyle options. Of course, with a strict THC-zero policy, any CBD product you buy in Japan is 100% THC-free."

Japan hemp business wants to distance itself from narcotics

https://www.dw.com/en/japans-hemp-business-wants-to-distance-itself-from-image-of-narcotics/a-56345992

maybe just allow marijuana to be legal then....people obviously want to smoke it. Prohibition of the actual product is pushing people into trying more dangerous compounds....control and legalise the actual product then.

Just say no!

Winners don’t take drugs.

haha....Sarcastic poster of the week goes to...