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Study Shows Cannabis Use During Pregnancy Doesn’t Affect Neurodevelopment of Children

July 14, 2023 Published by

A new study has shown that cannabis use during pregnancy is not associated with differences in the neurodevelopment of children exposed to cannabis in the womb. The study, which was published last month in the peer-reviewed journal Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology last month, found that prenatal cannabis exposure was not associated with lower scores on neuropsychological tests in children or with autism among young adults.

“Prenatal marijuana exposure was not associated with secondary outcomes or risks of clinical deficit in any neuropsychological assessments,” the authors of the study wrote.

To conduct the study, researchers affiliated with Columbia University and the University of Western Australia, Perth used data on 2,868 children from the Raine Study, one of the world’s largest prospective cohorts of pregnancy, childhood, adolescence and adulthood, to analyze the progression of prenatal cannabis exposure from pregnancy through age 20. The children in the study underwent neuropsychological testing at age 10, and again as young adults aged 19 or 20.

The researchers designed the study to control for a wide range of clinical and sociodemographic factors that might affect the outcome of the results. The study was also conducted over a long time span, much longer than other studies that have attempted to investigate the potential outcomes of prenatal cannabis exposure. Because of the study’s characteristics and its robust sample size, the research helps provide a better idea of what prenatal cannabis exposure can do to unborn children.

With the study’s controls in place to account for confounding factors, the researchers found no association between exposure to cannabis in the womb and neurodevelopmental outcomes. Specifically, the authors of the study determined that prenatal exposure to marijuana “was not associated with worse neuropsychological test scores at age 10 or autistic traits at 19-20,” according to their conclusions.

The researchers noted limitations of their study, including changes in the average potency of cannabis products and evolving methods of ingesting the drug over the last few decades. The researchers studied children born between 1989 and 1992, meaning they were likely exposed to less potent cannabis than what is available today. The researchers noted that “further research is warranted in a more contemporary birth cohort with a range of neuropsychological outcomes to further elucidate the effect of prenatal marijuana exposure on neurodevelopment.”

Other Research Inconclusive

The results of previous studies investigating the effects of prenatal cannabis exposure have been inconsistent. Some studies have shown an increase in neurodevelopmental differences such as autism, ADHD and anxiety in children who were exposed to cannabis in the womb, while others have not revealed such associations.

A systematic review of available research published in 2020 found that cannabis use during pregnancy may be associated with ADHD and related symptoms such as anxiety in children exposed to cannabis in utero. A separate study published the same year found that children whose mothers used cannabis while pregnant were 50% more likely to be diagnosed with autism. However, some experts note these studies may not be reliable because of limitations including problems with the methodology of the original research the studies are based on and small sample sizes.

Like the study published last month, other research has not found associations between prenatal cannabis exposure and neurodevelopmental problems in children.

A 2021 study found no association between cannabis exposure in the womb and autism when confounding factors such as the education of the mother and the use of alcohol and tobacco were controlled for. Another study published this year found that when maternal stress, a factor associated with both autism and cannabis use, was controlled for, no association between prenatal cannabis exposure and autism was found.

Expert Recommends Caution

Cannabis use during pregnancy is controversial, with many healthcare professionals warning that it should be avoided at all costs. Some cannabis advocates argue the dangers are overstated and that using cannabis during pregnancy can help relieve symptoms of morning sickness and alleviate stress, allowing pregnant women to get the nutrition and rest they need for a healthy pregnancy, among other benefits.

Dr. Peter Grinspoon, a primary care physician at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital and the author of “Seeing Through The Smoke: A Cannabis Specialist Untangles the Truth About Marijuana,” believes that there is still too much that is not known about how the drug can affect an unborn baby and cautions against cannabis use during pregnancy.

“It has not been conclusively demonstrated that cannabis is (or isn’t) safe during pregnancy or breastfeeding. As such, the prudent thing to do is to presume that cannabis use, especially regular, heavy cannabis use, is unsafe during pregnancy and breastfeeding until we uncover reasonable evidence that it is safe,” Grinspoon writes in the book. “Given what’s at stake, the burden of proof is on cannabis in this case. That means cannabis ought to be avoided or minimized by anyone who is pregnant or breastfeeding. Women who might become pregnant need to be carefully educated about the risks.”

The post Study Shows Cannabis Use During Pregnancy Doesn’t Affect Neurodevelopment of Children appeared first on Cannabis Now.

Study Shows Youth Increasingly Choosing Cannabis Over Alcohol

December 10, 2022 Published by

A study of cannabis use among young people in the US has increased by 245% since 2000 while youth use of alcohol decreased over the same period, according to the results of a study published this week. The study, which was posted online by the peer-reviewed journal Clinical Toxicology, tracked the incidence of misuse and abuse of alcohol, cannabis and other substances by young people reported to the National Poison Data System (NPDS) from 2000 through 2020. An analysis of the data identified 338,000 instances of intentional abuse or misuse of all substances among American children aged 6 to 18 during the period studied by researchers.

More than 80% of the reported ingestions of substances occurred among youth from 13 to 18, with a majority (58.3%) of cases reported among males. More than 32% of instances resulted in “worse than minor clinical outcomes.”

The research shows the changing trends in substance misuse and abuse among young people over time. In 2000, the largest number of alcohol misuse cases was reported, with the total steadily decreasing year over year since then. In contrast, the prevalence of reported cannabis exposure cases remained relatively stable from 2000 to 2009, then steadily increased starting in 2011, with a more dramatic spike in cannabis exposure cases between 2017 and 2020.

“Ethanol abuse cases exceeded the number of marijuana cases every year from 2000 until 2013,” Dr. Adrienne Hughes, one of the authors of the study and an assistant professor of emergency medicine at Oregon Health & Science University, said in a statement.

However, after that point, the apparent relative popularity of the two substances among young people had reversed.

“Since 2014, marijuana exposure cases have exceeded ethanol cases every year, and by a greater amount each year than the prior,” Hughes said.

The research showed that all types of cannabis have become more popular among young people. Marijuana edibles showed the highest monthly increase in use compared to other forms of cannabis, suggesting that many young people are eschewing smoking marijuana and switching to alternative cannabis products. 

“These edible and vaping products are often marketed in ways that are attractive to young people, and they’re considered more discrete and convenient,” Hughes said.

The researcher noted that young people may also perceive alternate forms of cannabis consumption as safer than smoking, but some studies have shown that this perception may not necessarily be accurate.

“Compared to smoking cannabis, which typically results in an immediate high, intoxication from edible forms of marijuana usually takes several hours, which may lead some individuals to consume greater amounts and experience unexpected and unpredictable highs,” said Hughes.

Spike In Cannabis Use Concurrent With Legalization Efforts

The spike in youth cannabis use since 2017 coincided with continuing successful marijuana policy reform efforts across the US. Including the results of the 2022 midterm elections, when Maryland and Missouri voters opted to legalize recreational marijuana, a total of 21 states have legalized adult-use cannabis. The authors believe that while these legalization efforts have been restricted to adults 21 and older, the increased availability of a variety of cannabis products may make it easier for young people to access marijuana and may have contributed to the perception that cannabis is safe.

“Our study describes an upward trend in marijuana abuse exposures among youth, especially those involving edible products,” Hughes says. “These findings highlight an ongoing concern about the impact of rapidly evolving cannabis legalization on this vulnerable population.”

The study also identified high levels of over-the-counter medication abuse among young people. Between 2001 and 2016, the highest number of drug abuse cases related to dextromethorphan, a commonly used over-the-counter cold and cough medicine. Oral antihistamines were also among the most misused substances in the study. Deaths from drug misuse were rare, occurring in only about 450 cases (about 0.1%) identified by the study. Substance misuse deaths were most common among teenagers 16 to 18 and occurred more often among males than females. Deaths from substance use among young people were most common following the use of opioids. 

The researchers also identified 57,488 incidents of substance misuse involving children aged 6 to 12. However, these cases didn’t usually include over-the-counter or illicit drugs but instead involved substances such as vitamins, plants, melatonin, hand sanitizers and others.

In their conclusion, the authors of the study wrote that the data from the NPDS “highlight an ongoing concern about the impact of rapidly evolving cannabis legalization on this vulnerable population.”

Limitations of the research include the data set being restricted to exposure cases classified as abuse or misuse. “It’s possible that additional misuse or abuse cases were classified otherwise and thus were missed,” the authors wrote.

The study states: “Trends in intentional abuse and misuse ingestions in school-aged children and adolescents reported to US poison centers from 2000-20,” was published online by the journal Clinical Toxicology on December 5.

The post Study Shows Youth Increasingly Choosing Cannabis Over Alcohol appeared first on Cannabis Now.