The effects of marijuana on each person depend on the

• type of marijuana and how much THC it contains;
• way the marijuana is taken (by smoking or eating);
• experience and expectations of the marijuana user;
• setting where the marijuana is used; and
• use of other drugs and/or alcohol.

Some people feel nothing at all when they first try marijuana. Others may feel high (euphoric).

It's common for marijuana users to become engrossed with ordinary sights, sounds, or tastes, and trivial events may seem extremely interesting or funny. Time seems to pass very slowly, so minutes feel like hours. Sometimes the marijuana causes users to feel thirsty and very hungry-an effect called "the munchies".

Most marijuana users roll loose marijuana in a pipe. One well-known type of water pipe is the bong. Some users mix marijuana into foods or use it to brew a tea. Another method is to slice open a cigar and replace the tobacco with marijuana, making what's called a blunt. When the blunt is smoked with a 40 oz. bottle of malt liquor, it is called a "B-40."

Lately, marijuana cigarettes or blunts often include crack cocaine, a combination known by various street names, such as "primos" or "woolies." Joints and blunts often are dipped in PCP and are called "happy sticks," "wicky sticks," "love boat," or "tical."

Government survey tells:

• Marijuana is the most frequently used illegal drug in the United States. Nearly 95 million Americans over the age of 12 have tried marijuana at least once.
• Over 14 million had used the drug in the month before the survey.

The Monitoring the Future Survey, which is conducted yearly, includes students from 8th, 10th, and 12th grades. In 2003, the survey showed that 18 percent of 8th-graders have tried marijuana at least once, and by 10th grade, 17 percent are current marijuana users (that is, used within the past month). Among 12th-graders, 46 percent have tried marijuana / hash at least once, and about 21 percent were current marijuana users.

Other researchers have found that use of marijuana and other drugs usually peaks in the late teens and early twenties, then declines in later years.

Research shows that nearly 50 percent of teenagers try marijuana before they graduate from high school.