What is 'heavy' cannabis use?

I have read that heavy cannabis use is linked to various things such as risk of cancer and schizophrenia, but what exactly is considered heavy use?

Is it just one joint a day every day? or ten or more joints a day?

I have friends who will smoke a 1/4 of an ounce or more each week and have been doing so for years, is that very heavy usage?

some of my friends smoke first thing in the morning and can't do without the morning 'hit'.

and in a sense I compare that to alcoholics who can't function without their first drink of the day, is this a valid comparison?

Well what your friend has been taking is a pretty high usage. It can be very dangerous for his body. Cannabis is first of all a very harmful drug to your body. This drug can affect you in many ways. It can sometimes make you feel happier, but it also affects the way you think and respond. Heavy Cannabis usage would be like around 5 joints a day. But I am not that sure because it depends on the body, some can cope with more joints than others. Anyways, without a doubt in my mind I do believe that heavy usage of cannabis definitely does and almost in every case there's been leads to schizophrenic psychosis and various other types of cancers. Here are some tips for cannabis smoking:
1. There are many reasons to smoke hashish and marijuana, such as to have a good time or to release your creative energies or for meditation. But don鈥檛 expect a joint to solve any problems for you.

2. If you smoke hashish or marijuana everyday, try to skip a couple of days now and then. It鈥檚 not only healthier to take a break, but it lowers your tolerance so you can again get high on just a few hits.

3. Smoking hashish or marijuana affects your ability to concentrate, so don鈥檛 smoke them at school, at work or when you are driving a car.

4. Some kinds of hashish or marijuana are stronger than others; they have a higher THC level. An experienced smoker senses when he has had enough. He knows it is time to stop. But if you are a new smoker, you don鈥檛 know when to stop. So it is important to get some reliable information first about what you鈥檙e are buying.

5. If you aren鈥檛 experienced, it is not a good idea to combine smoking with drinking any kind of alcoholic beverages. Alcohol can also suppress some of the more subtle effects of cannabis and turn a high into a downer.

6. When you have space cake, it is difficult to know how much cannabis you are eating. Before you know it, you will have too much. So start with a small piece. It can take anywhere from forty-five minutes to an hour and a half before you feel anything. Wait for it to take effect before you have another piece, otherwise you are sure to overdo it.

7. Sometimes smoking hashish or marijuana might not agree with you. It can lead to nausea or anxiety. Find a quiet place to relax, and eat or drink something sweet. Do not panic. In an hour, the worst of it will be over. Taking a megadose of B complex vitamins can help you come down faster.

8. If you are taking any kind of medication, consult a doctor before you smoke hashish or marijuana. Never smoke them if you are pregnant. If you are feeling ill you should not smoke.

9. When you smoke hashish or marijuana, substances (tar and carbon monoxide) are released that are harmful to your health. Using a water pipe or bong greatly reduces the tar content of smoke.

10. Be aware that if you smoke cannabis mixed with tobacco, you are also smoking tobacco. Nicotine is addictive. If you are handed a joint, always ask if it contains tobacco before smoking it. To avoid catching a cold or other infection, it鈥檚 always a good idea to smoke your own joint or pipe. Passing a joint seems cool, but might be unwise.

11. Do not buy hashish or marijuana on the street. Look for a good coffeeshop.

12. Do not take any hashish or marijuana with you when you go abroad.

13. Respect the herb, it鈥檚 a gift to mankind. Respect yourself and don鈥檛 overdo it!

I hope this will help you alot

prob an eighth a day, but it effects everyone differently

Had to look up how much an ounce is, being used to the metric system as I am. I think it equals about a gram a day. I'd say that is quite a lot (and that means a lot coming from, me because I am Dutch AND have an artistic profession, so I am used to people doing weed) but I know people who do more than that and still manage to appear pretty normal.

When you have one for breakfast and find you can't function without it.

The issue is the strength of the gear one is smoking. There is a load of "commercial" in the UK that is skunk. It's too heavy to be smokin too much and can do the head in. As far as I know about a quarter of solid is OK but then it depends if it is pipe or joint etc.
there is no hard and fast rule but if you are young (under 17) it can feck up your head permanently. depends if you are susceptible or not etc.

xxR

Any is too much,why is it that people today cant function without drugs,its a sad reflection of modern society that there are more and more dope heads in the world ,and less and less clear thinking,no wonder we are in a mess.

It's somewhat a matter of opinion. Some people might consider anyone who smokes a joint every day a heavy user, but in my logic, if that constituted heavy marijuana use, having 2 drinks a day would make you a heavy drinker.

I personally would consider smoking more than once a day (every day) heavy use, and smoking so much that you're high most of the day very heavy use.

Whether a quarter ounce is very heavy use or not would depend on the quality. If it was a quarter ounce of high strength weed, then it might be close to what I'd call very heavy use, but chances are, if they're going through that much in a week, it's cheaper stuff.

A quarter is 7 grams, a gram a day. A gram probably wouldn't make more than 2 joints.

Using cannabis every day is considered heavy use, but spending the whole weekend stoned isn't good either. Stick to one or two joints a week and you should be OK. Don't get stoned just because your friend are, do something less boring together instead. Nothing more boring than trying to talk to a stoner!

This is a deceiving "fact" what it actually means but has been twisted for the tactics of fear mongering, is that in extremely large quantities around an ounce a day for several years could set off schizophrenic symptoms that are there already. Or it could complicate things if you are already schizophrenic. It still has potential for some harm such as forgetfulness with say a quarter a week like your friends are doing as you say but it's not particularly threatening at that level.

Also there has been demonstrated to be no increase of chance of getting lung cancer from Cannabis as a study has shown, they don't know why or recommend you do it to prevent cancer but there is no increased risk!