POSTED MARCH 07, 2011, 11:03 AM , UPDATED NOVEMBER 30, 2011, 2:28 PM
ļæ¼
Ann MacDonald Contributor, Harvard Health
Teenagers and young adults who use marijuana may be messing with their heads in ways they donāt intend. Evidence is mounting that regular marijuana use increases the chance that a teenager will developĀ psychosis, a pattern of unusual thoughts or perceptions, such as believing the television is transmitting secret messages. It also increases the risk of developingĀ schizophrenia, a disabling brain disorder that not only causes psychosis, but also problems concentrating and loss of emotional expression. InĀ one recent studyĀ that followed nearly 2,000 teenagers as theyĀ ļæ¼became young adults, young people who smoked marijuana at least five times were twice as likely to have developed psychosis over the next 10 years as those who didnāt smoke pot. Another new paperĀ concluded that early marijuana use could actually hasten the onset of psychosis by three years. ThoseĀ most at riskĀ are youths who already have a mother, father, or sibling with schizophrenia or some other psychotic disorder. Young people with a parent or sibling affected by psychosis have a roughly one in 10 chance of developing the condition themselvesāeven if they never smoke pot. Regular marijuana use, however, doubles their riskāto a one in five chance of becoming psychotic. In comparison, youths in families unaffected by psychosis have a 7 in 1,000 chance of developing it. If they smoke pot regularly, the risk doubles, to 14 in 1,000. For years, now, experts have been sounding the alarm about a possible link between marijuana use and psychosis. One of the best-known studies followed nearly 50,000Ā young Swedish soldiersĀ for 15 years. Those who had smoked marijuana at least once were more than twice as likely to develop schizophrenia as those who had never smoked pot. The heaviest users (who said they used marijuana more than 50 times) were six times as likely to develop schizophrenia as the nonsmokers. So far, this research shows only anĀ associationĀ between smoking pot and developing psychosis or schizophrenia later on. Thatās not the same thing as saying that marijuanaĀ causesĀ psychosis. This is how research works.Ā Years ago, scientists first noted an association between cigarette smoking and lung cancer. Only later were they able to figure out exactly how cigarette smoke damaged the lungs and other parts of the body, causing cancer and other diseases. The research on marijuana and the brain is at a much earlier stage. We do know thatĀ THC, one of the active compounds in marijuana, stimulates the brain and triggers other chemical reactions that contribute to the drugās psychological and physical effects. But itās not clear how marijuana use might lead to psychosis. One theory is that marijuana may interfere with normal brain development during the teenage years and young adulthood. The teenage brain is still a work in progress. Between the teen years and the mid-20s, areas of the brain responsible for judgment and problem solving are still making connections with the emotional centers of the brain. Smoking marijuana may derail this process and so increase a young personās vulnerability to psychotic thinking. (You can read more about how the adolescent brain develops inĀ this article from theĀ Harvard Mental Health Letter.) While the research on marijuana and the mind has not yet connected all the dots, these new studies provide one more reason to caution young people against using marijuanaāespecially if they have a family member affected by schizophrenia or some other psychotic disorder. Although it may be a tough concept to explain to a teenager, the reward of a short-time high isnāt worth the long-term risk of psychosis or a disabling disorder like schizophrenia.
psychosis
POSTED MARCH 07, 2011, 11:03 AM , UPDATED NOVEMBER 30, 2011, 2:28 PM
ļæ¼
Ann MacDonald
Contributor, Harvard Health
Teenagers and young adults who use marijuana may be messing with their heads in ways they donāt intend.
Evidence is mounting that regular marijuana use increases the chance that a teenager will developĀ psychosis, a pattern of unusual thoughts or perceptions, such as believing the television is transmitting secret messages. It also increases the risk of developingĀ schizophrenia, a disabling brain disorder that not only causes psychosis, but also problems concentrating and loss of emotional expression.
InĀ one recent studyĀ that followed nearly 2,000 teenagers as theyĀ ļæ¼became young adults, young people who smoked marijuana at least five times were twice as likely to have developed psychosis over the next 10 years as those who didnāt smoke pot.
Another new paperĀ concluded that early marijuana use could actually hasten the onset of psychosis by three years. ThoseĀ most at riskĀ are youths who already have a mother, father, or sibling with schizophrenia or some other psychotic disorder.
Young people with a parent or sibling affected by psychosis have a roughly one in 10 chance of developing the condition themselvesāeven if they never smoke pot. Regular marijuana use, however, doubles their riskāto a one in five chance of becoming psychotic.
In comparison, youths in families unaffected by psychosis have a 7 in 1,000 chance of developing it. If they smoke pot regularly, the risk doubles, to 14 in 1,000.
For years, now, experts have been sounding the alarm about a possible link between marijuana use and psychosis. One of the best-known studies followed nearly 50,000Ā young Swedish soldiersĀ for 15 years. Those who had smoked marijuana at least once were more than twice as likely to develop schizophrenia as those who had never smoked pot. The heaviest users (who said they used marijuana more than 50 times) were six times as likely to develop schizophrenia as the nonsmokers.
So far, this research shows only anĀ associationĀ between smoking pot and developing psychosis or schizophrenia later on. Thatās not the same thing as saying that marijuanaĀ causesĀ psychosis.
This is how research works.Ā Years ago, scientists first noted an association between cigarette smoking and lung cancer. Only later were they able to figure out exactly how cigarette smoke damaged the lungs and other parts of the body, causing cancer and other diseases.
The research on marijuana and the brain is at a much earlier stage. We do know thatĀ THC, one of the active compounds in marijuana, stimulates the brain and triggers other chemical reactions that contribute to the drugās psychological and physical effects.
But itās not clear how marijuana use might lead to psychosis. One theory is that marijuana may interfere with normal brain development during the teenage years and young adulthood.
The teenage brain is still a work in progress. Between the teen years and the mid-20s, areas of the brain responsible for judgment and problem solving are still making connections with the emotional centers of the brain. Smoking marijuana may derail this process and so increase a young personās vulnerability to psychotic thinking. (You can read more about how the adolescent brain develops inĀ this article from theĀ Harvard Mental Health Letter.)
While the research on marijuana and the mind has not yet connected all the dots, these new studies provide one more reason to caution young people against using marijuanaāespecially if they have a family member affected by schizophrenia or some other psychotic disorder. Although it may be a tough concept to explain to a teenager, the reward of a short-time high isnāt worth the long-term risk of psychosis or a disabling disorder like schizophrenia.
Thatās why thereās no money down there. They just got casinos šš
You hillbillies will be one of the last states to make the push for legalization. Thank God I dont live there.