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JAMA Psychiatry. 2019;76(7):762-764. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2019.0076
Mirroring increases in the general population, the prevalence of past-month marijuana use among pregnant mothers in the United States increased by 75% between 2002 (2.85%) and 2016 (4.98%).1 Although cannabis use has been linked to psychosis, little is known about prenatal exposure.2,3 Unprecedented increases in marijuana use during pregnancy, alongside evidence that cannabis use is correlated with psychosis and that endocannabinoids play an important role in neurodevelopment, highlight the importance of evaluating potential long-term consequences of prenatal exposure.4
Thus, prenatal cannabis exposure may be associated with later psychosis proneness in offspring. Only when there is sufficient fetal endocannabinoid type 1 receptor expression, which may not occur until after many mothers learn they are pregnant. In the context of increasing cannabis accessibility and potency, perceptions of safety, and the potential use of cannabis to combat pregnancy-related nausea, these data suggest that cannabis use by pregnant women should be discouraged until more is known.
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Warning: Graphic and disturbing content
The court heard cannabis-induced psychosis, not a major mental disorder, spurred the brutal death of 67-year-old John Kehl by his then 31-year-old son Adam.
Adam Kehl voluntarily entered a plea of guilty to manslaughter in front of The Honourable Michelle Fuest in Barrie court on Nov. 22 who called the incident "horrifying and unusually brutal."
The following (not publicly reported) heinous drug-induced behaviour happened in Pueblo, Colorado earlier November 2019
A young man who used a cannabis wax and then experienced an excited delirium episode in which he ran in on coming traffic swinging a metal rod at cars. He was tazed and tackled by police and came in with 3 police officers and 5 paramedics working to hold him down. Prior to arrival EMS had given him 50 mg of diphenhydramine, 5 mg of Haldol, and 2 mg of Versed and he continued to be that combative. On arrival here he took all of the aforementioned personnel plus 3 of our security officers to hold and move him to the bed and hold him down. I gave 10 mg of Versed with plans to likely need to intubate him. He became more relaxed and calm following, never required intubation. UDS only positive for cannabis. He developed rhabdo and was admitted to the peds service for this following.
Patient was 17 years old
“High potency” is typically 10-12% THC. That simply does not exist in Colorado. It’s too weak.
Our kids have access to 17-20% THC easily to smoke as well as concentrates pushing 40-60% THC as well as the wax/shatters which are 90%+ THC. Easily and readily available to adolescents in Colorado.
We are at a tipping point in the US with our kids using these products.
Colorado Medical Doctor
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CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE In this cross-sectional study, parental marijuana use was associated with increased risk of substance use among adolescent and young adult offspring living in the same household. Screening household members for substance use and counseling parents on risks posed by current and past marijuana use are warranted.
JAMA Network Open. 2019;2(11):e1916015. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.16015
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- Smoking cannabis boosts brains' sensitivity to cocaine, US researchers report
- Young rats exposed to cannabis had 'enhanced reaction' to cocaine exposure
- In young humans cannabis abuse can enhance experiences with a different drug
Cannabis is a gateway drug that gives users a heightened sensitivity to harder illegal substances like cocaine, a new study suggests.
US researchers found adolescent rats that had been pre-exposed to cannabis had an enhanced reaction to their first exposure to cocaine.
Exposure to psychoactive cannabinoids during adolescence was found to 'prime' the animal's prefrontal cortex in the brain.
If applied to humans, the study suggests smoking a lot of weed as a teenager makes people more sensitive to cocaine and can lead to continued use and addiction.
Cannabis abuse during adolescence can enhance a person's initial positive experience with a different drug, such as cocaine, leading to sustained use.
Cannabinoid exposure in rat adolescence reprograms the initial behavioral, molecular, and epigenetic response to cocaine
The Science – Significance - The endocannabinoid system has a modulatory role in brain reward and cognitive processes. It has been hypothesized that repeated interference with endocannabinoid signaling (e.g., through abuse of cannabis or synthetic cannabinoids) can remodel the adolescent brain and make it respond differently to more addictive substances, such as cocaine. In the present study, we demonstrate that a history of synthetic cannabinoid exposure in adolescent animals results in distinct molecular and epigenetic changes following initial exposure to cocaine. These changes were pronounced in the prefrontal cortex and associated with an enhanced response to cocaine’s stimulatory effects. The prefrontal cortex is a brain region that still undergoes maturation in adolescence and its dysfunction contributes to the development of addictions.