THEY CALL IT DOPE FOR A REASON

Study sheds light on damaging effects of marijuana among college-aged adults

As support for legalized recreational marijuana use increases, some have warned that there is presently very little research indicating the effects of low to moderate use of the drug.  

It has been common knowledge for some time that marijuana use by children high school age and younger caused brain damage, however, the results of a small but sobering study released in April by several Boston-based researchers have shed light on the damaging effects of even casual use of the drug among young adults, according to the Society for Neuroscience.

The study, published in The Journal of Neuroscience, which compared high-resolution MRI brain scans of recreational marijuana users aged 18 to 25 with those of nonusers, found significant abnormalities in the left nucleus accumbens and the left amygdala of marijuana users, even those who smoked just once per week. These regions of the brain are responsible for pleasure and reward, processing memory, emotional reactions, and the assessment of negative consequences.

Previously, the only existing studies on the subject had applied to those who smoked excessively—for example, once per day for approximately three years. This study targets those who smoke only a few times per week.

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