A therapist friend recently attended a conference where a big group of doctors and health professionals focused around adolescents presented on the link between pot and the development of psychosis and even schizophrenia in users under age 32 or something like that.
I've definitely heard about this colloquially with people reacting very differently to the same strain ("we were all fine but she was just freaking out"), and the new science coming out of places like Colorado seems to be showing a strong correlation in that direction. I guess you could say (colloquially again, since I'm not at all in the medical field) that pot can open a bad door in some people that may have stayed shut otherwise. Is that gene expression? Brain plasticity? Dunno.
I think prohibition does way more harm than good and I'm glad to see legalization coming to the states, but I don't think we can treat pot as totally harmless for people under 30 and teens in particular because it seems like it's very harmful for some.
As I understand it THC aggravates symptoms in people predisposed to psychosis. CBD is antipsychotic and can have a balancing effect but unfortunately growers have been selectively breeding and optimizing for high THC at the expense of CBD for decades. The result is that cannabis is more "incompatible" with certain people than it used to be.
Fun anecdote, my Bipolar disorder didn't manifest itself until immediately after the first time I consumed marijuana, and it is now a lifetime endeavor.
Every study done, and likely to ever be done given ethical standards, attempting to link marijuana usage to mental illness shares the same fundamental problem which makes their results meaningless: It cannot account for self-selection. There is no way to know that those who would later be diagnosed with schizophrenia were not self medicating with marijuana, leading to the causation actually being backwards. And in that case there is also no way to know what effect preventing that self medication might have had, and whether it would be positive or negative.
Short of a plausible neurochemical explanation of how it would happen, phenomenological studies like those have to be discarded. They simply don't have the ability to illuminate anything, they can only feed intuitive guesses which is always dangerous in issues of health.
I'm not an expert on this though my father is, and from my recollection of our conversations I believe schizophrenia being latent until some trauma 'triggers' it in young adulthood is a quite common pattern, especially in men. Drug use is just one of many events that can induce this, and I don't believe it's in line with current clinical understanding to say that "door" "may have stayed shut otherwise".
A personal anecdote of mine. A friend has schizophrenia. There was a clear point of descent from smoking cannabis. He was 13 at the time - young for schizophrenia. He's now on clozapine, a powerful antipsychotic. Whenever his judgement fails him and he smokes pot, it's weeks to months before he has to spend some time in hospital. Otherwise, he could take other, heavier drugs to excess and not require urgent hospitalisation.
If anything, legalization will greatly increase the sample size of users that are comfortable with taking part in studies that could confirm the effects of marijuana on cognitive performance.
I personally find that in the times I've used marijuana, there's a very small zone between no effect and feeling like I'm clinging to my sanity. I rarely partake. It reminds me of how people describe ayahuasca as being profound, but not fun.
> but I don't think we can treat pot as totally harmless for people under 30 and teens in particular because it seems like it's very harmful for some.
But I can say the same for alcohol and cigarettes and ...
While there are a few diehards, most sane people will not defend "marijuana is harmless"--even for adults. It's a drug; it does something to your mind; that's why you use it.
However, the increasing amount of data suggests that what harm marijuana does is in the same class as things like alcohol and cigarettes--which are legal, but regulated.
All high school weed smokers are not equal. There are many occasional smokers.
For the sake of simplicity, let me put a number here.
High schooler between 9th to 12 grade who smoke weed at least 10 times a week all four years will settle in LIFE below 50% of his potential (compared to how he would have done without weed)
Maybe this is too reductionist but I once heard someone describe it as, "there's nothing fundamentally dangerous about pot, but one of its (often intended) effects is that is slows our engines down. And some of us need to be firing on all cylinders."
School was a tricky time for me. I'm thriving intellectually now, but I was a C- student pretty much 4th-12th grade. I needed those cycles that pot would have robbed me of.
South Park put it quite well: "Well, Stan, the truth is marijuana probably isn't gonna make you kill people, and it most likely isn't gonna fund terrorism, but… well, son, pot makes you feel fine with being bored. And it's when you're bored that you should be learning some new skill or discovering some new science or being creative. If you smoke pot you may grow up to find out that you aren't good at anything."
One the other hand, people who feel like their engines are firing on all cylinders all the time (ie ADHD and friends) might find some relief in a drug that allows them to slow down and switch of their head radio while firing on only one cylinder...
Well, same can be said about watching television, playing games or staring at your phone.
Now, if there is no adverse health issue other than making you a little dumber, shouldn't we also ban a host of other habits that cause just a bit of harm to you? What about eating sweets that may give you a bit of pleasure but are also unhealthy if ingested regularly? What about driving car to cinema when you could watch the movie in safety of your home without causing pollution or risking getting your kids in an accident?
Or maybe, just maybe, the freedom is value in itself and we should allow people to make decisions even if they are not optimal for themselves and for others who may have to chip in to pay for somebody elses mistakes?
It's funny because all it has ever done for me is the opposite. I'm a pretty energetic dude and weed has always made me want to get out and move, go and play a pickup game or something. It has also brought a different type of focus on any activity I'm doing.
I see a lot of pretty silly takes in this thread that weed automatically makes you happy with boredom somehow, and that apparently leads to a bunch of people sitting on couches zoned out who would have otherwise, with that "bored" time, gone out and learned juggling. Sounds like some grandma's opinion from the 40s.
It seems that this might not be entirely the case. In young mice, at least, THC slows them down... but in elderly mice, it returns their brain to normal functioning. There's speculation that the young might already have enough endocannabinoids but as we age and production slows, supplementation can benefit memory and cognitive capabilities. That's only supported in animal models for now, though.
If you use it right you don't just vegitate. It makes you far better at many tasks and can be used to do epic amounts of work so long as you get your work that requires a lot of thinking done first.
just my 2cts on smoking pot:
people always say pot is not addictive, and not fundamentally dangerous. but it's something that influences your state of mind, so it's totally dependent on your state of mind and your ability to control it. for me personally most drugs are not addictive, but i'm struggling already for YEARS to get off pot. first time i took time off it i actually got physically sick.
i've always smoked with pleasure, but i'd never ever recommend it to anyone, and i hope soon i will be free of it.
for me personally the effect is this:
when i am stoned, i can focus and learn easily. sometimes it feels more easy than when i'm sober.
HOWEVER
when i am stoned, i have trouble to APPLY what i learnt. when i am sober, it's easy to APPLY what i learnt. so it's very important to me to be sober, so i can finally apply more effectivly all that i learnt.
the key that led me to this is that one day in my early smoking days my brother told me, each year take a month or 2 off it, to show your mind and body you can do without. in these periods i started noticing these changes and differences between states of mind i was in, eventually taking me to the point of realization it was affecting me in a bad way compared to what i wanted out of life.
that being said i have a lot of stoner friends who are also aware of this, but it doesnt bother them and they live happy lives. that's the personal part. if it prevents you from being you or not, and if it stops you from acheiving your goals or not.
i am from the netherlands, it's super easy to get pot fairly ok pot to smoke, maybe for a person like me, too easy.
when i don't smoke even for a few days now after smoking pretty much constantly for around 10 years (5/6 joints a day generally) my cognition shoots up and because i can apply what i have learnt, my life's frustration drops and happiness increases. this is actually what i felt from being stoned when i first started, so that's also something which might be dynamic in nature, and personal to each individual.
last piece of information:
i think most people, smoke, drink and smoke pot etc. due to stress, knowingly or unknowingly. because these all reduce the impact of the stress. like instead of getting intense stress, you get less stress spread out over a longer period of time. this might seem nice for some very stressful singular event, but if you do it consistently , it means that you will be lagging behind on dealing with your stress, and these longer less stressful periods start to overlap, causing actually stress levels to be MUCH HIGHER than what you would expect.
be careful, self-reflect, and look critically at your life and how these substances affect your path. it's fun to do drugs or take substances w/e you want to call it. but there is a fine line between use and misuse. if you feel depressed or something like that, seek help from a PERSON and not a SUBSTANCE
Pediatric neurology and neurology are different specialties in medicine because developing brains are very different from adult brains.
I'm all for legalizing pot and it's just natural that young people _experiment_ with drugs. That does not mean that constant drug use during adolescence should be perceived as normal or harmless.
I had the exact opposite experience. I only began to grok a lot of the STEM stuff once I took up regular weed smoking, around the age of 16-18.
I did note an initial period in which it was disorienting and novel to be "high", but this subsided.
It helps me focus, It helps me cognate by reducing the noise and allowing me to be interested in whatever I put in front of my face. There is a euphoric effect upon taking a puff off the pipe that never goes away (not in over 30 years so far...) This euphoria is associated with learning, focus, getting work done, and a generally positive work cycle of reward.
I do not own a television. I have many hobbies, and managed to live from performing original music in over 50 countries for approximately a decade. I study API's and tutorials after dev work before sleeping... I've never been able to be a couch potato, although online social activity (what is this? expression? I'm not sure...useless for sure...) certainly robs a lot of my time and I wish I would have the self-discipline to get away more, so that's all for now lol :D
Beyond the direct cognitive effects, the increased probability of schizophrenia in people with predispositions to schizophrenia (if you have relatives who are schizophrenic) is staggering. (related: http://nationalacademies.org/hmd/reports/2017/health-effects...
Additionally, the smoke particulates themselves are really not good for your lungs, and are probably shortening peoples lives.
I believe marijuana has a place in society without a doubt, but people need to approach it with caution and try to avoid using it recreationally too frequently. Like most substances (e.g. sugar), it can become psychologically addictive. Related: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/06/opinion/sunday/marijuana-...
Personally, I'm a big fan, actually too big of a fan and trying to cut back on my habit right now.
A drug more benign than alcohol.
Smoke too much, take a nap.
Smoke too often, cut down and get sharp again.
Drink too much, you get flu symptoms.
Drink too much too often, you get a new liver, or die.
Everyone I know that smokes daily (a lot of people) is less cognitive than those I know who don't smoke, in every arena except artistic pursuits. And not everyone reacts to weed the same way. I decided to quit when I recognized a lessened ability to solve complex coding questions the day after smoking.
ITT: people talking about anecdotes and rebuttals to anecdotes using different time scales, time frames, usage scales, age ranges, statistics in different ranges and also totally incorrect information
I mostly agree with that, but I think we should definitely still be telling teens not to smoke pot, or really take any psychoactive drugs. And I say this as someone who has done a lot of them. Given that a lot of adults find it impossible to use drugs responsibly, teens definitely should be avoiding them.
I also think we should be doing it honestly and not telling them that their brain is going to immediately leak out of their ears and they're going to start turning tricks on corners to pay for their next hit.
"Hey, pot is going to temporarily make you dumber. Maybe don't use it a lot while you're trying to get through school. Thanks."
I'd love to see more research on this. I may occasionally consume, but one obvious effect is that I remember far less dreams if under the effect prior to sleeping that night. For me this is appreciated because dreaming is a source of mental annoyance the next day.
I have heard that it may reduce REM sleep. Consequently, many people who consume regularly then take a break will agree that after stopping they are flooded with more dreams than normal. They may be more intense, realistic, etc. But the effect subsides to normal quickly. Withdrawal is minor to non-existent for such people. Interesting!!
Cannabis slows down certain abstract thinking abilities and you basically think differently for a while. This can be an amazing insightful juxtaposition to normality. I suspect it is the effect on the short term memory centers that make it more difficult to hold complex ideas in your head long enough to find results. I personally do not enjoy critical thinking when partaking. I can feel the deficiency. It does seem to open my creative side, and for me goes best at the end of a long day like a glass of wine or video game.
Substance used to numb oneself turns out to actually numb oneself. News at 11.
Looking forward to grounbreaking research on "when adolescents give up smoking, their lung capacity quickly improves" and "when adolescents give up alcohol, their liver performance quickly improves".
The conclusion comes without further study. As an example, Professor Xia Zhang from the University of Saskatchewan discovered, which was further repeatedly verified, that marijuana causes neurogenesis [1].
This is interesting because other non marijuana related studies show that neurogenesis ends after puberty [2].
So, then, could the conclusion not be that the sudden growth of brain cells causes a sudden mismapping of information and memory within the brain causing slight issues with memory recall and retention until the brain is able to cope with and understand the neurogenesis?
I smoke a lot of weed (it's been legal in Oregon since 2014) and support Nationwide legalization, but I am fully aware of the risks and think we need to be absolutely clear and honest about them.
My brother began smoking weed in high school, he smoked so much I'd call it an addiction, eventually he developed what the doctors called substance induced psychosis, he saw and heard things no one else saw. He became really paranoid, it was scary to watch and I promised to myself I would never smoke weed.
He's fully recovered and as mentioned before I broke my promise to myself, we should do everything we can to keep weed out of kids hands until they are of legal age to buy it.
I'd also like to see the federal government allow for the FDA to research marijuana and it's byproducts, the fact that states are legalizing it without robust research from the FDA is backwards.
I took pot when I was 22 and it had disastrous effects on my life for over a year after. Had to seek psychiatric help because of it. Had intense depersonalization and panic effects triggered from the one bad pot experience. It's unfortunate that pot is perceived as being so benign. The psychiatrist told me that cases like me are actually not that rare unfortunately.
As a society we need to understand the effects of drugs and inform our citizens. Right now marijuana is a schedule 1 drug, right up there with heroin. This, to me, makes me ignore and distrust these classifications. This is not how we educate our populace on the harms of drugs!
We can't expect our youth to make a well informed decision when they are told:
1. Marijuana is a schedule 1 drug
2. Marijuana isn't as harmful as alcohol
3. People < 26 years old, who's brains are still developing, should limit their marijuana use.
A Colorado study of 5 year trends in pot use found 19% of high school students have used it in the oast month. It is almost same percentage reported in a national survey. The Colorado number was based 47K respondents.
Marijuana interferes with forming new memories, it's a pretty well known effect. Just try having a conversation with someone stoned, you're lucky if they can remember what the subject is one sentence later.
Obviously this effect isn't going to complement one's academic life, especially in the early stages where it's mostly rote memorization and testing.
Nothing news here. We all know kids recover quickly. Their minds are still developing and they can shake off whatever bad effects they have accumulated.
Title might as well be:
When Adolescents Give Up Pizza, their health quickly improves.
When Adolescents Give Up bad habits, their behavior quickly improves.
When Adolescents Give Up Facebook, their social circle quickly improves.
Meh what this study doesn't take into consideration is dependent memory states or differential memory states. If you learn something while high, then you often need to get high again to be able to remember it. This happens with everything from antidepressants to alcohol. Why this is always overlooked for cannabis I don't know.
For example, if someone where to study high, then get high before taking their test they might perform equally to the sober group or possibly even have improved performance. I know there have been many times when cannabis actually improved my cognition like this in certain circumstances.
Anyone who uses cannabis regularly will experience this, so of course if you stop using it completely the testing metrics they use to measure cognition will improve as the sober group becomes more sober their ability to remember what they've learned while sober will improve since they're no longer oscillating between different memory states. What would be really interesting is to take a control group who continues to use cannabis and see how they compare to the kids who you make stop using it. If their cognition remains stable and on par with the sober group with continued use then does this study really mean what they think it means?
This study is also limited to THC, which means they're only studying 1 cannabinoid and not the whole plant and how it works with CBD and other cannabinoids. From experience I can tell you that CBD counters many of the negative side effects of THC, as it functions as a neuro-protectant and anti-inflammatory. Had they tested against a variety of cannabinoids and measured which cannabinoids had what effects and then studied the using groups vs. the sober group and how they performed then you could come to a more conclusive argument.
[+] [-] framebit|7 years ago|reply
I've definitely heard about this colloquially with people reacting very differently to the same strain ("we were all fine but she was just freaking out"), and the new science coming out of places like Colorado seems to be showing a strong correlation in that direction. I guess you could say (colloquially again, since I'm not at all in the medical field) that pot can open a bad door in some people that may have stayed shut otherwise. Is that gene expression? Brain plasticity? Dunno.
I think prohibition does way more harm than good and I'm glad to see legalization coming to the states, but I don't think we can treat pot as totally harmless for people under 30 and teens in particular because it seems like it's very harmful for some.
One paper on the subject: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2931552/
[+] [-] galvin|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bitzun|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] otakucode|7 years ago|reply
Short of a plausible neurochemical explanation of how it would happen, phenomenological studies like those have to be discarded. They simply don't have the ability to illuminate anything, they can only feed intuitive guesses which is always dangerous in issues of health.
[+] [-] ghostly_s|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jwdunne|7 years ago|reply
The rule for him was always "cannabis triggers".
[+] [-] ghobs91|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] acjohnson55|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] bsder|7 years ago|reply
But I can say the same for alcohol and cigarettes and ...
While there are a few diehards, most sane people will not defend "marijuana is harmless"--even for adults. It's a drug; it does something to your mind; that's why you use it.
However, the increasing amount of data suggests that what harm marijuana does is in the same class as things like alcohol and cigarettes--which are legal, but regulated.
[+] [-] unknown|7 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] BurningFrog|7 years ago|reply
You're right, of course. But the same is true of peanuts.
[+] [-] mizchief2|7 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] LrnByTeach|7 years ago|reply
For the sake of simplicity, let me put a number here.
High schooler between 9th to 12 grade who smoke weed at least 10 times a week all four years will settle in LIFE below 50% of his potential (compared to how he would have done without weed)
[+] [-] unknown|7 years ago|reply
[deleted]
[+] [-] Waterluvian|7 years ago|reply
School was a tricky time for me. I'm thriving intellectually now, but I was a C- student pretty much 4th-12th grade. I needed those cycles that pot would have robbed me of.
[+] [-] Balero|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] zaarn|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] lmilcin|7 years ago|reply
Now, if there is no adverse health issue other than making you a little dumber, shouldn't we also ban a host of other habits that cause just a bit of harm to you? What about eating sweets that may give you a bit of pleasure but are also unhealthy if ingested regularly? What about driving car to cinema when you could watch the movie in safety of your home without causing pollution or risking getting your kids in an accident?
Or maybe, just maybe, the freedom is value in itself and we should allow people to make decisions even if they are not optimal for themselves and for others who may have to chip in to pay for somebody elses mistakes?
[+] [-] DisruptiveDave|7 years ago|reply
I see a lot of pretty silly takes in this thread that weed automatically makes you happy with boredom somehow, and that apparently leads to a bunch of people sitting on couches zoned out who would have otherwise, with that "bored" time, gone out and learned juggling. Sounds like some grandma's opinion from the 40s.
[+] [-] otakucode|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] nobody271|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] thanatropism|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] vectorEQ|7 years ago|reply
for me personally the effect is this: when i am stoned, i can focus and learn easily. sometimes it feels more easy than when i'm sober. HOWEVER when i am stoned, i have trouble to APPLY what i learnt. when i am sober, it's easy to APPLY what i learnt. so it's very important to me to be sober, so i can finally apply more effectivly all that i learnt.
the key that led me to this is that one day in my early smoking days my brother told me, each year take a month or 2 off it, to show your mind and body you can do without. in these periods i started noticing these changes and differences between states of mind i was in, eventually taking me to the point of realization it was affecting me in a bad way compared to what i wanted out of life.
that being said i have a lot of stoner friends who are also aware of this, but it doesnt bother them and they live happy lives. that's the personal part. if it prevents you from being you or not, and if it stops you from acheiving your goals or not.
i am from the netherlands, it's super easy to get pot fairly ok pot to smoke, maybe for a person like me, too easy.
when i don't smoke even for a few days now after smoking pretty much constantly for around 10 years (5/6 joints a day generally) my cognition shoots up and because i can apply what i have learnt, my life's frustration drops and happiness increases. this is actually what i felt from being stoned when i first started, so that's also something which might be dynamic in nature, and personal to each individual.
last piece of information: i think most people, smoke, drink and smoke pot etc. due to stress, knowingly or unknowingly. because these all reduce the impact of the stress. like instead of getting intense stress, you get less stress spread out over a longer period of time. this might seem nice for some very stressful singular event, but if you do it consistently , it means that you will be lagging behind on dealing with your stress, and these longer less stressful periods start to overlap, causing actually stress levels to be MUCH HIGHER than what you would expect.
be careful, self-reflect, and look critically at your life and how these substances affect your path. it's fun to do drugs or take substances w/e you want to call it. but there is a fine line between use and misuse. if you feel depressed or something like that, seek help from a PERSON and not a SUBSTANCE
[+] [-] nabla9|7 years ago|reply
I'm all for legalizing pot and it's just natural that young people _experiment_ with drugs. That does not mean that constant drug use during adolescence should be perceived as normal or harmless.
[+] [-] justaaron|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] jrowley|7 years ago|reply
Additionally, the smoke particulates themselves are really not good for your lungs, and are probably shortening peoples lives.
I believe marijuana has a place in society without a doubt, but people need to approach it with caution and try to avoid using it recreationally too frequently. Like most substances (e.g. sugar), it can become psychologically addictive. Related: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/06/opinion/sunday/marijuana-...
Personally, I'm a big fan, actually too big of a fan and trying to cut back on my habit right now.
[+] [-] S0ckpupp3t|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] 5trokerac3|7 years ago|reply
Everyone I know that smokes daily (a lot of people) is less cognitive than those I know who don't smoke, in every arena except artistic pursuits. And not everyone reacts to weed the same way. I decided to quit when I recognized a lessened ability to solve complex coding questions the day after smoking.
[+] [-] gammateam|7 years ago|reply
good one, hackernews
[+] [-] lou1306|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] empath75|7 years ago|reply
I also think we should be doing it honestly and not telling them that their brain is going to immediately leak out of their ears and they're going to start turning tricks on corners to pay for their next hit.
"Hey, pot is going to temporarily make you dumber. Maybe don't use it a lot while you're trying to get through school. Thanks."
[+] [-] simion314|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] sjg007|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] thedoops|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] b1r6|7 years ago|reply
I have heard that it may reduce REM sleep. Consequently, many people who consume regularly then take a break will agree that after stopping they are flooded with more dreams than normal. They may be more intense, realistic, etc. But the effect subsides to normal quickly. Withdrawal is minor to non-existent for such people. Interesting!!
[+] [-] erikpukinskis|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] edoo|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] toyg|7 years ago|reply
Looking forward to grounbreaking research on "when adolescents give up smoking, their lung capacity quickly improves" and "when adolescents give up alcohol, their liver performance quickly improves".
[+] [-] rasengan|7 years ago|reply
This is interesting because other non marijuana related studies show that neurogenesis ends after puberty [2].
So, then, could the conclusion not be that the sudden growth of brain cells causes a sudden mismapping of information and memory within the brain causing slight issues with memory recall and retention until the brain is able to cope with and understand the neurogenesis?
[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1253627/ [2] https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2018/03/07/5913056...
[+] [-] 40acres|7 years ago|reply
My brother began smoking weed in high school, he smoked so much I'd call it an addiction, eventually he developed what the doctors called substance induced psychosis, he saw and heard things no one else saw. He became really paranoid, it was scary to watch and I promised to myself I would never smoke weed.
He's fully recovered and as mentioned before I broke my promise to myself, we should do everything we can to keep weed out of kids hands until they are of legal age to buy it.
I'd also like to see the federal government allow for the FDA to research marijuana and it's byproducts, the fact that states are legalizing it without robust research from the FDA is backwards.
[+] [-] parf02|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] brainzap|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] fatlasp|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] wes-k|7 years ago|reply
We can't expect our youth to make a well informed decision when they are told:
1. Marijuana is a schedule 1 drug
2. Marijuana isn't as harmful as alcohol
3. People < 26 years old, who's brains are still developing, should limit their marijuana use.
[+] [-] peter303|7 years ago|reply
http://cdpsdocs.state.co.us/ors/docs/reports/2018-SB-13-283_...
P.S. Pot use under age 21 is not legal in Colorado.
[+] [-] moviuro|7 years ago|reply
[+] [-] newnewpdro|7 years ago|reply
Obviously this effect isn't going to complement one's academic life, especially in the early stages where it's mostly rote memorization and testing.
[+] [-] nashashmi|7 years ago|reply
Title might as well be:
When Adolescents Give Up Pizza, their health quickly improves.
When Adolescents Give Up bad habits, their behavior quickly improves.
When Adolescents Give Up Facebook, their social circle quickly improves.
[+] [-] mysticlabs|7 years ago|reply
For example, if someone where to study high, then get high before taking their test they might perform equally to the sober group or possibly even have improved performance. I know there have been many times when cannabis actually improved my cognition like this in certain circumstances.
Anyone who uses cannabis regularly will experience this, so of course if you stop using it completely the testing metrics they use to measure cognition will improve as the sober group becomes more sober their ability to remember what they've learned while sober will improve since they're no longer oscillating between different memory states. What would be really interesting is to take a control group who continues to use cannabis and see how they compare to the kids who you make stop using it. If their cognition remains stable and on par with the sober group with continued use then does this study really mean what they think it means?
This study is also limited to THC, which means they're only studying 1 cannabinoid and not the whole plant and how it works with CBD and other cannabinoids. From experience I can tell you that CBD counters many of the negative side effects of THC, as it functions as a neuro-protectant and anti-inflammatory. Had they tested against a variety of cannabinoids and measured which cannabinoids had what effects and then studied the using groups vs. the sober group and how they performed then you could come to a more conclusive argument.