Cannabis: Far From Harmless, especially for Teens, a Study Concludes

Key Takeaways:

• Recent research highlights significant risks associated with teenage cannabis use, particularly due to the substance’s influence on the neurological pathways responsible for addiction.
• Marijuana can notably impact brain functions responsible for learning, motivated behaviours, reward management, decision-making, and habit formation, with this impact being especially prominent in adolescents.
• Adverse effects from cannabis exposure, such as mental health instability, decreased educational attainment, delinquency, and impaired adult role conformity, tend to be more pronounced in teens than in adult users.
• Individual temperament, including traits such as negative emotion, aggression, and impulsiveness, can increase vulnerability to cannabis dependency.
• Further research is needed to better inform public policy and potentially beneficial interventions regarding cannabis, given the ramifications uncovered by the study.

A common misconception circulates that cannabis, colloquially known as marijuana, is a ‘safe drug,’ however, an in-depth analysis uncovers otherwise.

New Findings on Cannabis

Recent research highlights that marijuana could be notably damaging to teenagers. Such a discovery is of significant concern, considering the high popularity of marijuana amongst this demographic. The substance has profound implications for adolescents as it influences the neurological pathways responsible for addiction in their rapidly evolving brains.

Intriguingly, the widespread acceptance of marijuana as innocuous has resulted in an increasing number of legal approvals for its consumption and consequently, its easy availability.

The Study

Didier Jutras-Aswad of the University of Montreal, and Dr. Yasmin Hurd, of New York’s Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai express their concerns in the study. They emphasise that this attitude and resultant legislation regarding cannabis have overlooked its impact on an extremely susceptible group, namely teenagers, neglecting significant scientific data in the process.

They highlight the urgency for systematic scientific studies aimed at understanding the long-lasting impact of adolescent cannabis exposure on adult addictive behavior.[/p]

The Influence of Marijuana on Brain Function

Marijuana interacts with the brain through chemical receptors found in the regions responsible for learning, motivated behaviours, reward management, decision-making, and habit formation. These functions are susceptible to marijuana exposure as the structure of the brain undergoes rapid changes during adolescence.

Over 120 studies that scrutinize various facets of marijuana and its relationship with the adolescent brain, including aspects like the biology of the brain, chemical reactions induced by marijuana, and the influence of one’s genetic make-up and environment, was inspected by the study.

The Consequences of Teenage Cannabis Use

Certain adverse effects appear to be magnified when teenagers are exposed to cannabis versus adult users; these include mental health instability, decreased educational attainment, delinquency, and impaired adult role conformity.

Genetics and behavioural factors are believed to play a significant role in determining if drug use continues, given that merely a quarter of teenage cannabis users develop a dependency.

Identifying At-Risk Individuals

Vulnerability to cannabis dependency can notably stem from individual temperament, characterized by negative emotion, aggression, and impulsiveness, pre-existing from a young age. Such traits can perpetuate over time with continuous cannabis use, leading to a distressing loop of self-medication, ultimately resulting in dependency.

With these findings, it becomes apparent that marijuana is far from harmless. Implementing genetic and psychological screenings could be beneficial in detecting individuals at significant risk of drug abuse.

This endeavor is not about fostering contentions on the morality of cannabis but is aimed at identifying those at the most significant risk from its detrimental effects and preventing these risks.

The Future of Cannabis Research

Further rigorous research should be fostered to inform public policy in this critical area. Without such evidence-based research, the legal status of cannabis could potentially be determined on uncertain ground and might hinder the advancement of useful interventions, such as the medicinal use of cannabis plant components for specific conditions.

Additional resources

The U.S. National Institutes of Health provides more exhaustive information on marijuana, available at this link.