News BREAKING NEWS!: Casual marijuana use linked with brain abnormalities - Page 11

**Tribal Warfare** · 04-15-2014, 09:12 PM

Casual marijuana use linked with brain abnormalities, study finds

Casual marijuana use may come with some not-so-casual side effects.

For the first time, 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.

"The interaction of marijuana with brain development could be a significant problem."

- Dr. Hans Breiter, co-senior study author

“There were abnormalities in their working memory, which is fundamental to everything you do,” Breiter, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, told FoxNews.com. “When you make judgments or decisions, plan things, do mathematics – anything you do always involves working memory. It’s one of the core fundamental aspects of our brains that we use every day. So given those findings, we decided we need to look at casual, recreational use.”

For their most recent study, Breiter and his team analyzed a very small sample of patients between the ages of 18 and 25: 20 marijuana users and 20 well-matched control subjects. The marijuana users had a wide range of usage routines, with some using the drug just once or twice a week and others using it every single day.

Utilizing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the researchers analyzed the participants’ brains, focusing on the nucleus accumbens (NAC) and the amygdala – two key brain regions responsible for processing emotions, making decisions and motivation. They looked at these brain structures in three different ways, measuring their density, volume and shape.

According to Breiter, all three were abnormal in the casual marijuana users.

“For the NAC, all three measures were abnormal, and they were abnormal in a dose-dependent way, meaning the changes were greater with the amount of marijuana used,” Breiter said. “The amygdala had abnormalities for shape and density, and only volume correlated with use. But if you looked at all three types of measures, it showed the relationships between them were quite abnormal in the marijuana users, compared to the normal controls.”

Because these brain regions are central for motivation, the findings from Northwestern help support the well-known theory that marijuana use leads to a condition called amotivation. Also called amotivational syndrome, this psychological condition causes people to become less oriented towards their goals and purposes in life, as well as seem less focused in general.

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.

“We need to see what happens longitudinally,” Breiter said. “What happens as you follow people over time? What happens if they stop using – do these bad effects continue? What happens if you can intervene early?...My worry is we haven’t studied this compound and here we are looking to change legislation on it.”

Although Breiter’s team members did not examine the patients’ cognitive symptoms, they do believe that the brain abnormalities seen in their study could lead to substantial effects on brain development and behavior, especially given the young ages of the participants. Breiter also acknowledged the problems of analyzing a very small study sample – but said that their findings should still serve as a wake-up call to others.

“This study is just a beginning pilot study, but at the same time, the results that came out are the same as a canary in a coal mine,” Breiter said. “...The interaction of marijuana with brain development could be a significant problem.”

GloryDayz · 04-16-2014, 01:48 PM

In other news...........

htismaqe · 04-16-2014, 01:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donger

What?

There are strains of marijuana that have flowers that smell like a skunk.

Flowers = buds.

Skunk buds.

**Donger** · 04-16-2014, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by htismaqe

There are strains of marijuana that have flowers that smell like a skunk.

Flowers = buds.

Skunk buds.

And people willingly smoke that?

htismaqe · 04-16-2014, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Detoxing

I think people act that way because they've been bombarded by so much bullshit and lies that their natural reaction is to doubt any studies done by "the establishment" regarding MJ use.

And the study in OP doesn't seem all that legit either, which doesn't help any.

This.

Katipan · 04-16-2014, 01:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donger

And people willingly smoke that?

Well I can infuse it into some lettuce wraps if that will help.

htismaqe · 04-16-2014, 01:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donger

And people willingly smoke that?

There's more to skunk spray than just the smell. It's also an extreme skin and eye irritant - "skunk" weed is neither. It only irritates uptight squares...

**BigMeatballDave** · 04-16-2014, 01:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donger

And people willingly smoke that?

People willingly eat limburger cheese.

**Nzoner** · 04-16-2014, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donger

And people willingly smoke that?

the skunkier the better

**BigMeatballDave** · 04-16-2014, 01:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by htismaqe

It only irritates uptight squares...

**Donger** · 04-16-2014, 02:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by htismaqe

There's more to skunk spray than just the smell. It's also an extreme skin and eye irritant - "skunk" weed is neither. It only irritates uptight squares...

Okay. But it still smells like skunk spray. I think most people would say that skunk spray is unpleasant smelling.

**loochy** · 04-16-2014, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donger

And people willingly smoke that?

Just like people willingly drink vodka

htismaqe · 04-16-2014, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Donger

Okay. But it still smells like skunk spray. I think most people would say that skunk spray is unpleasant smelling.

If skunk spray didn't burn the **** out of your eyes and nose, it wouldn't smell nearly as bad. Does that make sense?

Katipan · 04-16-2014, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by loochy

Just like people willingly drink vodka

I can sip quality vodka neat all night. But how do people drink scotch? I can't even smell it without thinking of dry heaving.

**Donger** · 04-16-2014, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by htismaqe

If skunk spray didn't burn the **** out of your eyes and nose, it wouldn't smell nearly as bad. Does that make sense?

No. I've never been sprayed but I know that it's stinky regardless.

BlackHelicopters · 04-16-2014, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by loochy

Just like people willingly drink vodka

Somebody mention vodka?

04-15-2014, 09:12 PM
Tribal Warfare The Boom Boom Room Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Far Beyond Comprehension Casino cash: $942813	BREAKING NEWS!: Casual marijuana use linked with brain abnormalities Casual marijuana use linked with brain abnormalities, study finds Casual marijuana use may come with some not-so-casual side effects. For the first time, 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. "The interaction of marijuana with brain development could be a significant problem." - Dr. Hans Breiter, co-senior study author “There were abnormalities in their working memory, which is fundamental to everything you do,” Breiter, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, told FoxNews.com. “When you make judgments or decisions, plan things, do mathematics – anything you do always involves working memory. It’s one of the core fundamental aspects of our brains that we use every day. So given those findings, we decided we need to look at casual, recreational use.” For their most recent study, Breiter and his team analyzed a very small sample of patients between the ages of 18 and 25: 20 marijuana users and 20 well-matched control subjects. The marijuana users had a wide range of usage routines, with some using the drug just once or twice a week and others using it every single day. Utilizing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the researchers analyzed the participants’ brains, focusing on the nucleus accumbens (NAC) and the amygdala – two key brain regions responsible for processing emotions, making decisions and motivation. They looked at these brain structures in three different ways, measuring their density, volume and shape. According to Breiter, all three were abnormal in the casual marijuana users. “For the NAC, all three measures were abnormal, and they were abnormal in a dose-dependent way, meaning the changes were greater with the amount of marijuana used,” Breiter said. “The amygdala had abnormalities for shape and density, and only volume correlated with use. But if you looked at all three types of measures, it showed the relationships between them were quite abnormal in the marijuana users, compared to the normal controls.” Because these brain regions are central for motivation, the findings from Northwestern help support the well-known theory that marijuana use leads to a condition called amotivation. Also called amotivational syndrome, this psychological condition causes people to become less oriented towards their goals and purposes in life, as well as seem less focused in general. 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. “We need to see what happens longitudinally,” Breiter said. “What happens as you follow people over time? What happens if they stop using – do these bad effects continue? What happens if you can intervene early?...My worry is we haven’t studied this compound and here we are looking to change legislation on it.” Although Breiter’s team members did not examine the patients’ cognitive symptoms, they do believe that the brain abnormalities seen in their study could lead to substantial effects on brain development and behavior, especially given the young ages of the participants. Breiter also acknowledged the problems of analyzing a very small study sample – but said that their findings should still serve as a wake-up call to others. “This study is just a beginning pilot study, but at the same time, the results that came out are the same as a canary in a coal mine,” Breiter said. “...The interaction of marijuana with brain development could be a significant problem.”
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04-16-2014, 01:48 PM	#151
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