New study links even casual marijuana use to brain abnormalities

[DigitalDrifter]

Even casual use can screw with your memory.

Even used just now and then can mess with your memory.

Casual marijuana use linked to brain abnormalities in students: Dramatic effects of small time use; more 'joints' equal more damage

Date: April 15, 2014


Source: Northwestern University


Summary: Young adults who used marijuana only recreationally showed significant abnormalities in two key brain regions that that are important in emotion and motivation, scientists report. This is the first study to show casual use of marijuana is related to major brain changes. It showed the degree of brain abnormalities in these regions is directly related to the number of joints a person smoked per week.

oung adults who used marijuana only recreationally showed significant abnormalities in two key brain regions that are important in emotion and motivation, scientists report. The study was a collaboration between Northwestern Medicine® and Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School.






This is the first study to show casual use of marijuana is related to major brain changes. It showed the degree of brain abnormalities in these regions is directly related to the number of joints a person smoked per week. The more joints a person smoked, the more abnormal the shape, volume and density of the brain regions.

"This study raises a strong challenge to the idea that casual marijuana use isn't associated with bad consequences," said corresponding and co-senior study author Hans Breiter, M.D. He is a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and a psychiatrist at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

"Some of these people only used marijuana to get high once or twice a week," Breiter said. "People think a little recreational use shouldn't cause a problem, if someone is doing OK with work or school. Our data directly says this is not the case."

The study will be published April 16 in the Journal of Neuroscience.

Scientists examined the nucleus accumbens and the amygdala -- key regions for emotion and motivation, and associated with addiction -- in the brains of casual marijuana users and non-users. Researchers analyzed three measures: volume, shape and density of grey matter (i.e., where most cells are located in brain tissue) to obtain a comprehensive view of how each region was affected.

Both these regions in recreational pot users were abnormally altered for at least two of these structural measures. The degree of those alterations was directly related to how much marijuana the subjects used.

Of particular note, the nucleus acccumbens was abnormally large, and its alteration in size, shape and density was directly related to how many joints an individual smoked.

"One unique strength of this study is that we looked at the nucleus accumbens in three different ways to get a detailed and consistent picture of the problem," said lead author Jodi Gilman, a researcher in the Massachusetts General Center for Addiction Medicine and an instructor in psychology at Harvard Medical School. "It allows a more nuanced picture of the results."

Examining the three different measures also was important because no single measure is the gold standard. Some abnormalities may be more detectable using one type of neuroimaging analysis method than another. Breiter said the three measures provide a multidimensional view when integrated together for evaluating the effects of marijuana on the brain.

"These are core, fundamental structures of the brain," said co-senior study author Anne Blood, director of the Mood and Motor Control Laboratory at Massachusetts General and assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. "They form the basis for how you assess positive and negative features about things in the environment and make decisions about them."

Through different methods of neuroimaging, scientists examined the brains of young adults, ages 18 to 25, from Boston-area colleges; 20 who smoked marijuana and 20 who didn't. Each group had nine males and 11 females. The users underwent a psychiatric interview to confirm they were not dependent on marijuana. They did not meet criteria for abuse of any other illegal drugs during their lifetime.

The changes in brain structures indicate the marijuana users' brains are adapting to low-level exposure to marijuana, the scientists said.

The study results fit with animal studies that show when rats are given tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) their brains rewire and form many new connections. THC is the mind-altering ingredient found in marijuana.

"It may be that we're seeing a type of drug learning in the brain," Gilman said. "We think when people are in the process of becoming addicted, their brains form these new connections."

In animals, these new connections indicate the brain is adapting to the unnatural level of reward and stimulation from marijuana. These connections make other natural rewards less satisfying.

"Drugs of abuse can cause more dopamine release than natural rewards like food, sex and social interaction," Gilman said. "In those you also get a burst of dopamine but not as much as in many drugs of abuse. That is why drugs take on so much salience, and everything else loses its importance."

The brain changes suggest that structural changes to the brain are an important early result of casual drug use, Breiter said. "Further work, including longitudinal studies, is needed to determine if these findings can be linked to animal studies showing marijuana can be a gateway drug for stronger substances," he noted.

Because the study was retrospective, researchers did not know the THC content of the marijuana, which can range from 5 to 9 percent or even higher in the currently available drug. The THC content is much higher today than the marijuana during the 1960s and 1970s, which was often about 1 to 3 percent, Gilman said.

Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug in the U.S. with an estimated 15.2 million users, the study reports, based on the National Survey on Drug Use and Health in 2008. The drug's use is increasing among adolescents and young adults, partially due to society's changing beliefs about cannabis use and its legal status.

A recent Northwestern study showed chronic use of marijuana was linked to brain abnormalities. "With the findings of these two papers," Breiter said, "I've developed a severe worry about whether we should be allowing anybody under age 30 to use pot unless they have a terminal illness and need it for pain."

Casual marijuana use linked to brain abnormalities in students: Dramatic effects of small time use; more 'joints' equal more damage -- ScienceDaily

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

The guy was on Fox the other day.
What he said is pretty much a repeat of what we already know.
Pot makes it tough to get up off the couch.
Some are more effected by it then others,same as alcohol. But you dont see calls for prohibition to be brought back.

 

[mudwhistle]

The guy was on Fox the other day.
What he said is pretty much a repeat of what we already know.
Pot makes it tough to get up off the couch.
Some are more effected by it then others,same as alcohol. But you dont see calls for prohibition to be brought back.

A shot of Johnny Walker Red does the same thing.........and screws up your liver......

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

The guy was on Fox the other day.
What he said is pretty much a repeat of what we already know.
Pot makes it tough to get up off the couch.
Some are more effected by it then others,same as alcohol. But you dont see calls for prohibition to be brought back.

A shot of Johnny Walker Red does the same thing.........and screws up your liver......

Yep. I will say I dont have the desire to sit on the couch after a few drinks like I do with pot.
It's all a matter of knowing when the time is appropriate to smoke or drink. Unfortunately some people will never have this ability. As it's been forever.

 

[mudwhistle]

The guy was on Fox the other day.
What he said is pretty much a repeat of what we already know.
Pot makes it tough to get up off the couch.
Some are more effected by it then others,same as alcohol. But you dont see calls for prohibition to be brought back.

A shot of Johnny Walker Red does the same thing.........and screws up your liver......

Yep. I will say I dont have the desire to sit on the couch after a few drinks like I do with pot.
It's all a matter of knowing when the time is appropriate to smoke or drink. Unfortunately some people will never have this ability. As it's been forever.

Booze is a stimulant.

However, it is much more damaging to your body than grass, in it's natural state, is.

 

[mudwhistle]

How Alcohol Affects Your Body

When consumed in large amounts over a prolonged period of time, alcohol can harm virtually every part of your body. Many of the effects are reversible if alcohol consumption is subsequently controlled - other effects are permanent.



Alcohol and the Blood:

Extended alcohol abuse can cause blood conditions including several forms of anemia and blood clotting abnormalities. These conditions could result in susceptibility to bleeding and bruising. Prolonged alcohol use can also impair white blood cell function and thus makes the abuser more likely to become infected.


Alcohol and the Brain:

Please see our separate page about the effects of how alcohol affects the brain.


Alcohol and the Esophagus:

Half the cancers in the esophagus, larynx and mouth are linked to alcohol. Additionally, intense vomiting from excessive drinking can tear the esophogus.



Alcohol and the Heart:

Excessive and prolonged alcohol consumption can cause contribute to conditions such as high blood pressure, heart disease and heart failure. Social drinkers who binge can get irregular heartbeats from their alcoholic habits.



Alcohol and the Joints and Muscles:

Osteoporosis and and some forms of arthritis can be advanced by alcohol abuse. Further, alcohol can lead to muscle atrophy, which can cause sharp muscle pain and weakness.



Alcohol and the Kidneys:

Prolonged heavy drinking can cause kidney failure. The primary functions of kidneys are to regulate the composition and volume of the fluids and electrolytes circulating through the body. The kidneys regulate water, acid/base balance, certain hormones and minerals (calcium, potassium, sodium, etc.) in the body. Alcohol can influence or compromise the balancing functions of the kidneys, and thus can cause severe consequences on kidney function and thus the body.


Alcohol and the Liver:

Cirrhosis is a buildup of scar tissue that changes the structure of the liver and blocks blood flow. Cirrhosis can be causeed by alcoholic hepatitis, which is, of course, caused by overdrinking. Cirrhosis can cause varicose veins, which can rupture and potentially triggering internal bleeding.


Alcohol and the Lungs:

Heavy drinkers are more susceptible to pneumonia and lung collapse, and also have more pulmonary infections.


Alcohol and the Pancreas:

Alcohol can reduce the amount of digestive enzymes secreted by the pancreas, thereby inflaming and leaking digestive enzymes, which subsequently attack the pancreas itself.


Alcohol and the Reproductive System:

Because of alcohol's affects on the brain and alcohol's effects on the kidneys, hormonal production is affected. In men, this could mean that the production of sperm and testosterone are affected, and that can lead to impotence and/or infertility. In women, estrogen metabolism in the liver can be decreased, which boost estrogen levels in the body. These changes can contribute to menstrual irregularities and potentially infertility.


Alcohol and the Small intestines:

Alcohol can damage the cells lining the stomach and intestines, which can block the absorption and breakdown of nutrients in those organs.


Alcohol and the Stomach:

Alcohol can irritate the stomach to the point of inducing gastritis (inflammation of the stomach lining), ulcers and acid reflux. Prolonged exposure to alcohol can erode the stomach lining and cause chronic blood seepage into the stomach. If the individual is particularly unlucky, a vessel can rupture and cause major bleeding.

​

How Alcohol Affects Your Body

 

[DigitalDrifter]

And pot messes with your memory.

 

[mudwhistle]

And pot messes with your memory.

And gives you a major case of the munchies.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

And pot messes with your memory.

Wait...what were we talking about? I forget....

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

Anyone have any Doritos?

 

[DigitalDrifter]

I was reading that pot use, can lead to loss of memory.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

I was reading that pot use, can lead to loss of memory.

Noway! I remember..almost everything.

 

[DigitalDrifter]

I was reading that pot use, can lead to loss of memory.

Noway! I remember..almost everything.

I know, that's what I thought, but I saw something on TV that claimed..................................uh.......................oh, yeah, it said that your memory can be affected.

 

[Zander]

The war on marijuana continues ........ Reefer madness!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[hangover]

New study links even casual marijuana use to brain abnormalities

Joint study done by Jack Daniels and Budweiser.

 

[Montrovant]

A shot of Johnny Walker Red does the same thing.........and screws up your liver......

Yep. I will say I dont have the desire to sit on the couch after a few drinks like I do with pot.
It's all a matter of knowing when the time is appropriate to smoke or drink. Unfortunately some people will never have this ability. As it's been forever.

Booze is a stimulant.

However, it is much more damaging to your body than grass, in it's natural state, is.

When did booze become a stimulant?

 

[DigitalDrifter]

Oh wow, I forgot about this thread. I meant to mention to everyone, that these crackpots are even claiming that pot can effect your memory.