Category: Marijuana

Marijuana Linked to Psychotic Episodes, Vomiting

On Sunday NBC News published an article regarding the link between high-potency marijuana and psychotic episodes and vomiting.

Among other things, NBC’s report highlights:

• An increase in the number of reports of marijuana users going to the ER due to psychotic episodes and vomiting.
• A 2019 study that found using marijuana with THC levels exceeding 10% increased the odds of a psychotic episode.
• A growing body of research that suggests marijuana can have damaging effects on adolescent brains.

It’s important to point out that most marijuana today qualifies as “high-potency.”

The average amount of THC in marijuana has risen significantly in recent years — especially as states have moved to legalize so-called “medical” and recreational marijuana.

Research like this is part of the reason medical experts have warned children and pregnant women about the dangers of using marijuana.

A recent study out of California found a link between heavy marijuana use during pregnancy and negative health outcomes among children.

Other researchers have found marijuana use fuels self-harm among young men.

And a study recently published in JAMA Pediatrics found that heavy cannabis use among adolescents and young adults with mood disorders is “associated with an elevated risk of self-harm, overall mortality, and death by unintentional overdose and homicide.”

The list goes on, but all of this underscores what we have said for years: Marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.

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More Evidence Marijuana Use During Pregnancy May Harm Newborns

A recent study out of California found a link between heavy marijuana use during pregnancy and negative health outcomes among children.

Researchers found infants were 35% more likely to die within a year of birth if the mother used marijuana heavily; the study also found that infants were more likely to be born preterm, have a low birth weight, and be small for their gestational age.

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, recent studies have shown marijuana use during pregnancy is rising, with some expectant mothers reportedly using it to relieve nausea and vomiting.

In 2019 the U.S. Surgeon General issued an advisory warning women not to use marijuana during pregnancy.

That same year the Arkansas Department of Health issued an advisory on marijuana as well.

Among other things, the Arkansas Department of Health’s advisory noted, “Marijuana is particularly harmful to a developing child. Smoking marijuana during pregnancy is associated with being born at low birth weight, a risk factor for death in the child’s first year of life.”

This latest research seems to confirm that marijuana is dangerous to children.

All of this underscores what we have said for years: Marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.

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Legalizing Marijuana Use Fuels Rise in Self-Harm among Young Men

Already this year, New York and Virginia have joined a growing list of states that have legalized recreational marijuana. By doing so, they’ve also joined the list of states increasing the likelihood of young men committing suicide and hurting themselves.

According to a recent report in the Journal of the American Medical Association, states that allow commercial marijuana sales saw “self-harm rates rise by 46% among men ages 21 to 39.” Self-harm includes suicide attempts and behaviors like cutting.

This is the latest report to suggest that recreational marijuana use, is dangerous, especially for young people and especially for young people with a certain genetic makeup. Of course, there’s no reliable way to know whether or not a young person is genetically vulnerable until it’s too late.

Despite a growing body of evidence, states continue to push for legalization as if nothing could possibly go wrong. We already know it has.

Copyright 2021 by the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. Reprinted from BreakPoint.org with permission.

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