Casual marijuana use linked with brain abnormalities, study finds

FoxNews.com ^ | Published April 15, 2014 | By Loren Grush

[DBCJR]

...Researchers at Northwestern University have analyzed the relationship between casual use of marijuana and brain changes – and found that young adults who used cannabis just once or twice a week showed significant abnormalities in two important brain structures.

The study’s findings, to be published Wednesday in the Journal of Neuroscience, are similar to those of past research linking chronic, long-term marijuana use with mental illness and changes in brain development.

Dr. Hans Breiter, co-senior study author, said he was inspired to look at the effects of casual marijuana use after previous work in his lab found that heavy cannabis use caused similar brain abnormalities to those seen in patients with schizophrenia.

... Given these eye-opening results, Breiter said that more research is needed to look into marijuana’s effects on the brain – even in those who use the drug only once or twice a month.

[AlaskaErik]

There’s a reason it’s called dope!

[clearcarbon]

I wonder if obamacare blood tests will expose the drug abuse?

[Larry Milk]

This story makes my head hurt.

[KosmicKitty]

Pot affects your brain, along with alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, oxygen, nano particles, gamma rays, sunlight, moonlight, pornography, classical music, rock music etc.

[gdani]

Generally speaking, inhaling burning things into your lungs is not healthy.

Alcohol, cigarettes, caffeine, prescription drugs and various foods are also bad for people.

[corkoman]

No drug is harmless. All have harms. Its a judgment call and free men should be able to make bad decisions for ourselves.

here is link to a MedPage article that suggests caution about this study's "conclusions".

www.medpagetoday.com/Neurology/GeneralNeurology/45290?isalert=1&uun=g375543d1133R5368868u&utm_source=breaking-news&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=breaking-news&xid=NL_breakingnews_2014-04-16

Crud - how do you embed a hotlink? And does anyone else feel an urge to add an "e" after judge in judgment? I hate that. Must be I have a brain defect from... nooooooo!