'The Link Between Marijuana and Psychosis is Significant'

Gabriel Klein's tale hints at dark truth of chronic pot use on 'susceptible' young brains, doctor says

Gabriel Klein is a young man who walked into an Abbotsford High School and stabbed two young girls, one of them, Letisha Reimer, to death. Klein was a complete stranger to anyone in the school and had no interaction with the girls before attacking them. Letisha was buried yesterday with a crowd of more than a thousand people in attendance.

I live in Abbotsford, British Columbia and, in fact, the helicopter that transported the girls to the hospital flew right over my car shortly after take-off as I happened to be less than a block away. 

'The link between marijuana and psychosis is significant' says UBC psychiatrist Dr. Bill MacEwan

By Yvette Brend, CBC News 

Canadian youth have the highest rate of marijuana use in the developed world and marijuana is the most commonly-used illegal drug among Canadians aged 15 to 24 years. 

Gabriel Klein's friends say he was smoking pot every day for the past three months.

Then one day the 21-year-old changed.

A few weeks later — on Nov. 1 —  he was accused of walking into a high school and stabbing Letisha Reimer, 13, and another teen.

Klein was admitted to hospital after his arrest, certified under the Mental Health Act by one doctor and then decertified by a psychiatrist the next day, the prosecutor said.

Details about exactly what drugs Klein was using and his mental state are still emerging, but for Dr. Bill MacEwan the facts, so far, hint at the darker reality of heavy drug use for a certain percentage of chronic young pot smokers.

Homicide investigators released this photo early in the investigation, which they say shows Gabriel Klein at an undisclosed location, just hours before the fatal stabbing. (IHIT/Twitter)

While the assistant director of UBC's department of psychiatry stresses that the percentage is tiny, he and others who study the link between pot and psychosis say it should be part of the conversation.

Marijuana — framed of late as medicinal, mainstream and benign — is in common use amongst Canadian youth, who have the highest rate of pot use in the developed world for those aged 15 to 24, according to the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse.

And while most smokers who start using while their brain is developing risk impaired learning and motor skills, a tiny percentage of people who smoke pot — one to three per cent — will also experience psychosis.

Playing Russian Roulette with your brain

Dr. MacEwan says the ratio approaches 30 to 40 per cent in a sub-set of young chronic pot smokers who have other risk factors.

It's worse if the person is homeless, stressed and using a cocktail of chemicals daily.

For them, MacEwan says, it's like playing Russian roulette with their brain.

"The link between marijuana and psychosis is significant," says Dr. William MacEwan of UBC's psychiatry department. (Cliff Shim/CBC)

A youth who is smoking excessive amounts, unsure what they are smoking and using marijuana to cope with stress, are at highest risk, MacEwan said.

"Psychosis in a drug-induced state is really quite common, particularly amongst vulnerable youth such as this young man.They will often have to use drugs, particularly drugs like cocaine and methamphetamine, to stay awake at night. They will often used drugs to cope with stress and those that are under really difficult situations like being homeless ... then the drugs will affect you worse."

In addition schizophrenia, unlike other mental illnesses, emerges in young adulthood — usually in the early 20s for men and later for women, and it's believed pot speeds the progression.

"Emerging evidence supports a number of associations between cannabis and psychosis/psychotic disorders, including schizophrenia," according to a 2014 review of the association between cannabis and psychosis led by Dr. Rajiv Radhakrishnan from Yale's School of Medicine.

A debate rages with many scientists saying abolishing pot would not prevent schizophrenia, and marijuana advocates deeming this a "scare tactic," claiming pot actually helps soothe anxiety and calm mental disorders.

But medical experts contend it is clear that for some smokers who start young,  heavy drug-use can precipitate psychosis,

For the lucky, it's temporary. For others, it's the first bout of a life-long struggle with schizophrenia.

"In some brains, we don't understand exactly why, we think maybe genetics or maybe trauma in the past, that these brains are then really susceptible to having the effects of drugs make them lose touch with reality," said MacEwan.

"The link between marijuana and particularly psychosis is significant." 

A protester lights a joint during a 4-20 marijuana rally on Parliament Hill. (Sean Kilpatrick/Canadian Press)

Some medical experts urge pot-avoidance under age 20, in case their brain has hidden vulnerabilities that will only emerge with drug use.

"Not every 14-year-old who smokes marijuana will have schizophrenia," said Dr. Romina Mizrahi, a director of the Youth Psychosis Prevention clinic at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto.

She explains a myriad of factors — from genetics to trauma history — determine the risk to an individual. 

Variables from marijuana strength, user frequency to how young they are when they start, all play a part. 

A girl smokes a joint at the 4-20 event in downtown Vancouver, B.C., on Monday, April 20, 2015. (Jonathan Hayward/The Canadian Press)

Chance of psychosis 8 times higher

"If you smoke a lot of marijuana when you are young or in your teens, your chance of having psychosis later on in life is about eight times higher than other people," MacEwan said research has shown.

He suddenly changed

Klein's friends describe him as a genial "stoner."

He had no fixed address but lived at Covenant House, followed the rules and worked hard in school.

Then one night he "smoked a bowl" and told his friend Nathaniel Spidell the pot was spiked with acid or something stronger.

Spidell said his friend became fearful and paranoid.

"Everything went downhill after that. He wasn't the same person," said the 23-year-old.

From the outside, people see a person withdraw in a "fearful, angry, irritable way," said MacEwan.

"That young man's friends saying, 'oh he isn't the way he used to be' — is typical."

And that makes it worse, because the person can't relate to people who could help them.

While violence isn't the norm, it can be a result of untreated psychosis.

Klein's friends say they do not recognize the man they see in the video as Klein.

He is nothing like the friend they knew, but that's exactly what psychosis looks like. 

A stranger — perhaps even in the mirror.

    'I could just never imagine him being a violent person,' said Jordan Reid, 23 (right) standing
    with Nathaniel Spidell (left). (Kamil Karamali/CBC)

'Skunk-Like Cannabis' Increases Risk of Psychosis by 3 to 5 Times

Former skunk user Liaquat Zaman: "It brought me to a very dark place in my life"

Smoking potent cannabis was linked to 24% of new psychosis cases analysed in a study by King's College London.

The research suggests the risk of psychosis is three times higher for users of potent "skunk-like" cannabis than for non-users.

The study of 780 people was carried out by KCL's Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience.

A Home Office spokesman said the report underlines the reasons why cannabis is illegal.

Scientists found the risk of psychosis was five times higher for those who use it every day compared with non-users.

They also concluded the use of hash, a milder form of the drug, was not associated with increased risk of psychosis.

Psychosis refers to delusions or hallucinations that can be present in certain psychiatric conditions such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

Risk increased 'threefold'
"Compared with those who had never tried cannabis, users of high potency skunk-like cannabis had a threefold increase in risk of psychosis,' said Dr Marta Di Forti, lead author on the research.

She added: "The results show that psychosis risk in cannabis users depends on both the frequency of use and cannabis potency."

Dr Di Forti told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that the availability of skunk-like cannabis was becoming more widespread.

'I was a wreck'
Cath from Berkshire, who asked to remain anonymous, believes smoking skunk caused her to experience mental health problems.

"I dabbled with a friends' group in my early 20s, and went from someone who had never experienced any mental health issues whatsoever, to an absolute wreck.

"I was terrified of leaving the house, and I became petrified of death, of the mysteries of the universe, and of being alone. You name it, I was terrified of it.

"It took about six years to feel normal again and now, almost 20 years later, I have absolutely no doubt that my issues were triggered by casually and naively smoking this so called 'soft' drug.

"For years I have shuddered as campaigners have sought to declassify or promote the product as I understand first-hand the hidden yet, until now, unspoken dangers of this awful drug."

"In London, it's very difficult to find anything else," Dr Di Forti said.

"There were lots of reports from police across the UK saying we have become a great producer of skunk. And not only do we use it locally but we export, so this is a Made in England product."

Someone suffering from psychosis would often be "extremely paranoid and become very suspicious" about the people around them, she added.

She has called for "a clear public message" to cannabis users, comparable to medical advice on alcohol and tobacco.

GPs should be encouraged to ask how often and what type of cannabis patients use, she added,

A Home Office spokesman said the findings backed up the government's approach: "Drugs such as cannabis are illegal because scientific and medical evidence demonstrates they are harmful.

"This report serves to emphasise how they can destroy lives and communities."

'Without risk'
Skunk contains more THC - the main psychoactive ingredient - than other types of cannabis.

Unlike skunk, hashish - cannabis resin - contains substantial quantities of another chemical called cannabidiol or CBD and research suggests this can act as an antidote to the THC, counteracting psychotic side effects.

Sir Robin Murray, professor of psychiatric research at King's, commented: "This paper suggests that we could prevent almost one quarter of cases of psychosis if no-one smoked high potency cannabis.

"This could save young patients a lot of suffering and the NHS a lot of money."

The research was carried out over several years, comparing 410 patients aged 18-65 who reported a first episode of psychosis at a south London psychiatric hospital with 370 healthy participants within the same age range from the same area of London.

It will be published later this week in the Lancet Psychiatry.

Rosanna O'Connor, director of alcohol, drugs and tobacco at Public Health England, responded: "No drug use is without risk as this report demonstrates.

"Anyone having problems with drug use should seek help from their local specialist drug services. It is important to remember that treatment for all types of drug problems, including cannabis, are readily available and very effective".

Cannabis user Robert, from Hertfordshire experienced a "temporary psychosis" after taking home-grown cannabis in his 20s.

"It was utterly terrifying, and the worst night of my life," he told the BBC News website.

"As someone affected by this issue it is hard watching mainstream media, particularly comedy films, portraying cannabis as a harmless life-enhancing substance with limited ill-effects - it's simply not true."

Another person who contacted the BBC website felt that legalising cannabis would allow varieties to be regulated.

Phil, from Cambridgeshire, said: "Speaking as a 'toker' for past 25 years, super skunk is the term they should be using.

"The cause of all this is the illegality. If things were more open and informed, people could buy 'saner' variety seeds."

Yes, people 'could' buy 'saner' seeds, but would they? I doubt it very much. If there was a demand for less potent marijuana, it would dominate the market, but it doesn't. Users want the maximum impact from the drug.

Skunk, has been reclassified as a hard-drug in Holland where pot is legal.

See, Playing Russian Roulette with Your Sanity, for more info and several more links.

Playing Russian Roulette with Your Sanity

Millions of people, especially teenagers and pre-teens (tweens) are playing Russian Roulette with their sanity and it is very dangerous.

Russian Roulette, for some of you  young people who may not know, is a 'game' played with a gun, with potentially deadly consequences. How it works is like this: you take an old fashioned revolver, one with a cylinder that spins and holds 6 bullets, like they used in old western movies where the hero is the only one who can count to 6 so he knows when the bad guy is out of bullets before the bad guy does.

Next, you empty the cylinder of all the bullets, then put one bullet back into the cylinder and spin the cylinder. Without looking at the gun, you lift it to the side of your head and pull the trigger. If you are lucky the active chamber will be empty; if the rest of the world is lucky, you'll be dead, thereby qualifying for a Darwin award. Darwin awards are given to those who improve the gene pool of the planet by eliminating one idiot - them.

Teens and even some tweens are 'playing the game' and don't even know it. They think the chambers are all empty so they can put the gun to their heads and shoot without fear. But the guns are not empty, and young people are putting their sanity at great risk.

How? By smoking pot! Kids under 16 have a 1 in 6 chance of developing full-blown, irreversible Schizophrenia, or Paranoia, or both, from smoking pot. 1 in 6 - just like Russian Roulette. The odds improve somewhat as you get older but never approach zero. 

Numerous studies by some of the top psychologists in the world have confirmed this, and yet Countries and States all over the world are either decriminalizing marijuana, legalizing it, or are thinking about it. Once it is legalized or decriminalized, kids will be convinced that it must not be harmful, that the gun is empty.

You might assume that about even harder drugs if you  live in Edinburgh, Scotland, where the city council just issued a booklet to at least one school with 13 year old kids, explaining how to use street-drugs safely; drugs like cannabis, ecstasy and cocaine. I think they were probably on something when they approved the booklet - there is no such thing as taking street-drugs safely.

More and more research is finding more and more problems with cannabis. It is now associated with lower IQs, poorer memories, and lesser degrees of accomplishment. Aside from a 1 in 6 risk of insanity, there is a 1 in 6 probability that kids will become addicted to pot. Modern pot is several times more powerful than the older stuff.

Research on the Dangerous Effects of Marijuana on the Brain

Marijuana Linked to Death of Colorado Exchange Student

Marijuana Use Linked to Brain Abnormalities

20 Year Study Confirms Significant Dangers from Regular Marijuana Use

More Scary Research into the Effects of Marijuana on Teenagers

Effects of Marijuana Sales in Colorado Serious Cause for Concern

Colorado pot shop

There is so much more information in the links above, please check them out. There is one more effect that science is just beginning to discover about marijuana. It's something I have observed for almost 40 years. It is that regular pot smokers stop maturing! They literally get stuck in the year that they start regular use of the drug.

A neighbour I knew in 1978 was stuck in 1965. He and his wife loved kids but had none - didn't want the responsibility; the drove a 1965 Mustang, they listened to 1964-65 Beatles music on Walkmans all weekend, they dressed like hippies all weekend, and they smoked pot all weekend.

That is one of many examples; the most extreme example, I believe, is Michael Jackson, whom, I have heard began smoking pot with his brothers at about 8 or 9. Most of Jackson's friends described him as a boy in a man's body. I  have no doubt that he was mentally, emotionally and socially, an 8 or 9 year old boy all his life; and I have little doubt that pot was entirely to blame.

You can function in this world while being stuck in an undeveloped state of maturity, but it will eventually catch up to you and make your life miserable. It will also prevent you from ever finding and accomplishing the very reason for your existence.

Please, if you are a parent, tell your kids that there are real bullets in that gun, and there is no coming back from it.

Effects of Marijuana Sales in Colorado Serious Cause for Concern

(CNN) -- This week, Washington state opened recreational marijuana stores for the first time. And these stores don't just carry your father's kind of weed. In addition to highly potent cigarettes -- which are much stronger than those some people might remember from Woodstock -- stores will also soon sell super-strength, pot-infused cookies, candies, sodas, vapor and wax concentrates.

Time will tell what the effects will be, but the state is not the first place to implement such a policy. Colorado started to sell marijuana six months ago. When President Barack Obama stopped by a Denver bar on Tuesday night, it comes as no surprise that someone offered him weed.

Colorado's experience with pot legalization can hardly be called a success. In fact, it should be considered a warning for the residents of Washington.

Special-interest "Big Tobacco"-like groups and businesses have ensured that marijuana is widely promoted, advertised and commercialized in Colorado. As a result, calls to poison centers have skyrocketed, incidents involving kids going to school with marijuana candy and vaporizers seem more common, and explosions involving butane hash oil extraction have risen. Employers are reporting more workplace incidents involving marijuana use, and deaths have been attributed to ingesting marijuana cookies and food items.

So much for the old notion that "pot doesn't kill."

Marijuana companies, like their predecessors in the tobacco industry, are determined to keep lining their pockets.

Indeed, legalization has come down to one thing: money. And it's not money for the government -- Colorado has only raised a third of the amount of tax revenue they have projected -- it's money for this new industry and its shareholders.

Open Colorado newspapers and magazines on any given day and you will find pages of marijuana advertisements, coupons and cartoons promoting greater and greater highs. The marijuana industry is making attractive a wide selection of marijuana-related products such as candies, sodas, ice cream and cartoon-themed paraphernalia and vaporizers, which are undoubtedly appealing to children and teens.

As Al Bronstein, medical director of the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center recently said, "We're seeing hallucinations, they become sick to their stomachs, they throw up, they become dizzy and very anxious." Bronstein reported that in 2013, there were 126 calls concerning adverse reactions to marijuana. From January to April this year, the center receive 65 calls.

And, since Colorado expanded marijuana stores for medical users, peer-reviewed research has found a major upsurge in stoned driving-related deaths (that is not surprising since marijuana intoxication doubles the risk of a car crash).

It is little wonder that every major public health association, including the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and the American Society of Addiction Medicine oppose the legalization of marijuana.

The scientific verdict is that marijuana can be addictive and dangerous.

Like a deli that stinks

Despite denials by special interest groups and marijuana businesses, the drug's addictiveness is not debatable: 1 in 6 kids who ever try marijuana will become addicted to the drug, according to the National Institutes of Health. Many baby boomers have a hard time understanding this simply because today's marijuana can be so much stronger than the marijuana of the past.

In fact, more than 450,000 incidents of emergency room admissions related to marijuana occur every year, and heavy marijuana use in adolescence is connected to an 8-point reduction of IQ later in life, irrespective of alcohol use.

As if our national mental illness crisis needed more fuel, marijuana users also have a six times higher risk of schizophrenia and are significantly more likely to development other psychotic illnesses. It is no wonder that health groups such as the National Alliance of Mental Illness are increasingly concerned about marijuana use and legalization.

That does not mean we need to arrest our way out of a marijuana problem.

We should reform criminal justice practices and emphasize prevention, early intervention and treatment when necessary. But we do not need to legalize -- and thus commercialize and advertise -- marijuana to implement these reforms.

The only people better off under legalization are the big companies that stand to profit from sales of marijuana. And we can be sure they will get even richer while public health and safety suffers.

The New York Times
Law enforcement officers in Colorado and neighboring states, emergency room doctors and legalization opponents increasingly are highlighting a series of recent problems as cautionary lessons for other states flirting with loosening marijuana laws.

There is the Denver man who, hours after buying a package of marijuana-infused Karma Kandy from one of Colorado’s new recreational marijuana shops, began raving about the end of the world and then pulled a handgun from the family safe and killed his wife, the authorities say. Some hospital officials say they are treating growing numbers of children and adults sickened by potent doses of edible marijuana. Sheriffs in neighboring states complain about stoned drivers streaming out of Colorado and through their towns.


“I think, by any measure, the experience of Colorado has not been a good one unless you’re in the marijuana business,” said Kevin A. Sabet, executive director of Smart Approaches to Marijuana, which opposes legalization. “We’ve seen lives damaged. We’ve seen deaths directly attributed to marijuana legalization. We’ve seen marijuana slipping through Colorado’s borders. We’ve seen marijuana getting into the hands of kids.”

Antidepressant Drugs May Not Be Best Treatment - SSRIs Reduce Brain’s Capacity To Produce Serotonin

For the past 25 years, people suffering from depression have been treated with antidepressant drugs like Zoloft, Prozac and Paxil — three of the world’s best-selling selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRIs. But people are questioning whether these drugs are the appropriate treatment for depression, and if they could even be causing harm.

The drugs are designed to address a chemical imbalance in the brain and thereby relieve the symptoms of depression. In this case, it’s a shortage of serotonin that antidepressants work to correct.

In fact, there are pharmaceutical treatments targeting chemical imbalances for just about every form of mental illness, from schizophrenia to ADHD, and a raft of anxiety disorders. Hundreds of millions of prescriptions are written for antipsychotic, antidepressant and anti-anxiety medications every year in the United States alone, producing billions of dollars in revenue for pharmaceutical companies. Who, of course, are quite willing to sacrifice your mental health for the sake of a few dollars.

Robert Whitaker

Robert Whitaker has won numerous awards as a journalist covering medicine and science, including the George Polk Award for Medical Writing and a National Association for Science Writers’ Award for best magazine article. (Courtesy Robert Whitaker)

But what if the very premise behind these drugs is flawed? What if mental illnesses like depression aren’t really caused by chemical imbalances, and that millions of the people who are prescribed those drugs derive no benefit from them? And what if those drugs could actually make their mental illness worse and more intractable over the long term?

Investigative journalist Robert Whitaker argued that psychiatric drugs are a largely ineffective way of treating mental illness in his 2010 book called Anatomy of an Epidemic: Magic Bullets, Psychiatric Drugs and the Astonishing Rise of Mental Illness in America.

Whitaker maintains that the foundation of modern psychiatry, the chemical imbalance model, is scientifically unproven.

“If you dig into the science behind it,” Whitaker told Michael Enright, host of The Sunday Edition on CBC Radio, “you’ll find out that it’s not true, and that this was a hypothesis that arose in the 1960s, that depression was due to low serotonin, and that it was investigated and found not to be true by the early 1980s. And there was subsequent research to see if this was so, and it never panned out.

“And as early as 1998, the American Psychiatric Association in its textbook says we’re not finding that people with depression have any abnormality in their serotonin, (thanks for telling us APA) but because it’s such an effective metaphor for getting people to take the drugs and sell the drugs, it’s continued to be promoted.”

Whitaker’s book was unsurprisingly controversial upon its release, but it went on to win the 2010 Investigative Reporters and Editors Book Award. And since its publication, an increasing number of influential psychiatric researchers have publicly come around to Whitaker's point of view.

​In fact, Ronald Pies, a psychiatrist and the former editor of The Psychiatric Times, refers to the chemical imbalance hypothesis as an “urban legend” that well-informed psychiatrists never bought into.

Whitaker says that when Anatomy of an Epidemic came out, the controversy wasn’t so much over his debunking of the chemical imbalance hypothesis. It was over his finding that people who took psychiatric drugs were more likely to exhibit symptoms five years after being diagnosed than those who did not take the drugs.

Thomas Insel, the director of the National Institute of Mental Health in the U.S., has weighed in on antipsychotic drugs and reached a conclusion that echoes Whitaker’s: That antipsychotic drugs impede long-term recovery rates.

According to Whitaker, research suggests that while people suffering from depression may not have low serotonin levels to begin with, the use of SSRIs reduces the brain’s capacity to produce serotonin on its own, leading to a worsening of symptoms when patients stop taking the drugs.

“One of the worries,” said Whitaker, “is that if you’re on these medications long enough, when you come off, will your brain re-normalize? And that’s an open question now.

“What is quite clear is that the drug alone rarely leads to long-term recovery.”

One has to wonder if this was the plan all along by the pharmaceutical companies - convince people they need the drug, then, after they have been on it for awhile, they really do need it, and can't get off it. It's a win-win for moral-less pharmaceutical companies devoid of any conscience. 

More Research on the Dangerous Effects of Marijuana on the Brain

Research from Harvard Medical School indicates that even casual use of pot can cause permanent brain damage.

People who had only used cannabis once or twice a week for a matter of months were found to have changes in the brain that govern emotion, motivation and addiction. The damage increased with the amount of cannabis used.

Dr Hans Breiter, professor of psychiatry and behavioural sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, (author of the study reported in the post immediately below)
“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.
“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.”

“Drug abuse can cause more dopamine release than natural rewards like food, sex and social interaction. That is why drugs take on so much salience, and everything else loses its importance.” The study is published in the Journal of Neurosciences.

Mark Winstanley, chief executive of Rethink Mental Illness, said: “For too long cannabis has been seen as a safe drug, but as this study suggests, it can have a really serious impact on your mental health.

“Research also shows that when people smoke cannabis before the age of 15, it quadruples their chance of developing psychosis. But very few people are aware of the risks involved.”

***************************************************************

• The younger drug abuse starts, the more abnormal the brain

CHICAGO --- Teens who were heavy marijuana users -- smoking it daily for about three years -- had abnormal changes in their brain structures related to working memory and performed poorly on memory tasks, reports a new Northwestern Medicine® study. 

A poor working memory predicts poor academic performance and everyday functioning.

The Northwestern research shows, of the 15 marijuana smokers who had schizophrenia in the study, 90 percent started heavily using the drug before they developed the mental disorder. Marijuana abuse has been linked to developing schizophrenia in prior research.

***************************************************************

A New Zealand study found the cannabis users were more than twice as likely to have a stroke at an early age (18-55). Interestingly, there is no evidence of any correlation with heart attacks.

See post immediately below for more info and also Does Pot make You Crazy?

Narcissisim

Pot Smoking Teens Suffer Brain Damage Well Into Adulthood

Teenagers who regularly smoke cannabis suffer long lasting brain damage and are in much greater danger of developing schizophrenia. 

American researchers say the drug is particularly dangerous for a group of people who have a genetic susceptibility to the mental health disorder - and it could be the trigger for it. 

Asaf Keller, of the University of Maryland School of Medicine, said the results highlight the dangers of teenagers smoking cannabis during their formative years. 

The study, published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology, exposed young mice to the active ingredient in marijuana for 20 days.

It found that their brain activity was impaired, with the damage continuing into adulthood.



The past 20 years has seen major controversy about the long-term effects of marijuana, with experts divided over its long-term effects on teenagers.

• Mental health toll of skunk cannabis: Number of users admitted to hospital after smoking drug soars 50% in three years

Previous research has shown that children who started using marijuana before the age of 16 are at greater risk of permanent brain damage, and have a significantly higher incidence of psychiatric disorders.

‘Adolescence is the critical period during which marijuana use can be damaging,’ said the study's lead author, Sylvina Mullins Raver, a PhD candidate at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

‘We wanted to identify the biological underpinnings and determine whether there is a real, permanent health risk to marijuana use.’

The scientists began by examining cortical oscillations in mice. Cortical oscillations are patterns of the activity of neurons in the brain and are believed to underlie the brain's various functions. 

These oscillations are very abnormal in schizophrenia and in other psychiatric disorders. 

The scientists exposed young mice to very low doses of the active ingredient in marijuana for 20 days, and then allowed them to return to their siblings and develop normally.

‘In the adult mice exposed to marijuana ingredients in adolescence, we found that cortical oscillations were grossly altered, and they exhibited impaired cognitive abilities,’ said Raver.

‘We also found impaired cognitive behavioural performance in those mice. The striking finding is that, even though the mice were exposed to very low drug doses, and only for a brief period during adolescence, their brain abnormalities persisted into adulthood.’


The scientists repeated the experiment, this time giving marijuana to adult mice that had never been exposed to the drug before.

Their cortical oscillations and ability to perform cognitive tasks remained normal, indicating that it was only drug exposure during the critical teenage years that impaired brain activity. This does not mean that cannabis use is not damaging to adult brains - see CANNABIS DESTROYS YOUR GET-UP-AND-GO just below. I also believe that my observation of cessation of maturity growth in adults is still valid.

‘We found that the frontal cortex is much more affected by the drugs during adolescence,’ said Keller. ‘This is the area of the brain controls executive functions such as planning and impulse control. It is also the area most affected in schizophrenia.’

Keller now wants to know whether the effects can be reversed. ‘We are hoping we will learn more about schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders, which are complicated conditions,’ he said.

‘These cognitive symptoms are not affected by medication, but they might be affected by controlling these cortical oscillations.’

CANNABIS DESTROYS YOUR GET-UP-AND-GO
 A separate study by Imperial College London last month revealed that long-term use of cannabis destroys dopamine, the feel-good chemical in the brain that inspires a spirit of get-up-and-go.

Previous research has suggested taking marijuana can lead to individuals becoming withdrawn, lethargic and apathetic.

The cannabis users in the study published in Biological Psychiatry had all experienced psychotic-like symptoms while smoking the drug such as strange sensations or having feelings of paranoia.

The researchers expected their dopamine production might be higher since this has been linked with psychosis - but instead found the opposite.

The cannabis users had their first experience with the drug between the ages of 12 and 18 and the researchers believe the drug could be the cause of the difference in dopamine levels.

'Cannabis is an illegal drug and there is mounting evidence the idea of it being a harmless herb is not true,’ said Dr Michael Bloomfield, of Imperial College London.

'When people stop taking cannabis it seems the brain can slowly go back to producing pretty normal levels of dopamine.

'Cannabis has effects on the brain and it’s important people can make an informed decision.'

As governments race to reduce or eliminate laws against smoking pot, thereby legitimizing it as harmless, evidence mounts of the incredible danger of marijuana to teens. Please make your adolescent children and grandchildren aware that pot can literally destroy their lives. I know, I've seen it, it's horrible!

Pot, Schizophrenia, and The Truth

Since posting 'Does Pot Make You Crazy?" last month, I have had some interesting comments about it. The post lists a number of Psychiatric doctors, leaders in their respective countries, who claim that high potency pot has contributed to a dramatic increase in the incidence of schizophrenia, especially, but not exclusively, among young teens. 

Many readers reject the opinions of these learned and experienced scientists in favour of their own opinion, which they deem to be much superior, regardless of their education or lack of it. I have come to the opinion that these people are users and no amount of 'proof' would convince them that there is any problem with their habit.

There was an old Christian teacher, one time, who declared, "morality dictates theology". In other words, we construct our image of God and His requirements according to what will allow us to continue with the habits that we enjoy. This is certainly true for some but others diligently seek the truth and eventually find it, even though it comes at some cost.

Pot smokers have a similar standing. They construct the truth to meet their own desires disregarding scientific fact or reality. Paul Simon wrote in his wonderful song, 'The Boxer', "Still a man he hears what he wants to hear, and disregards the rest". This selective hearing has nothing to do with the truth and everything to do with the 'will'. 

Our will overpowers our common sense, our ability to hear the truth, and rejects anything that comes with a cost. I'm not talking money here, I'm talking having to give up something - sacrifice. You can only really know the truth when you are willing to sacrifice whatever it is that gets in the way of it. You don't actually have to sacrifice it to know the truth, but you have to be willing to sacrifice it.

Once you know the truth, it is up to you whether you want to continue with your habit. You can play Russian Roulette with your sanity if you so choose, but don't pretend that there is no risk involved - that gun has a bullet in it!

11 Students Suspended for a Semester after Smoking Pot on School Trip

The Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada school district says it's planning a policy review after 11 students who admitted to smoking marijuana on a school trip were suspended for the semester.

On Monday morning, 12 students from Sardis Secondary were called to the principal's office to discuss the allegations of drug use, which apparently took place last month during an overnight soccer trip to Surrey.

Eleven of those students admitted to smoking pot, as well as breaking curfew, and were consequently kicked out of school for the entire semester.

The parent of one of the suspended students, however, felt the punishment went too far.

Derek Middleton met with school officials and eventually had his son's suspension overturned, though the teen must now complete community service and participate in a course that explore the dangers of drugs and alcohol.

"To me, with today's system — even in the justice system — restorative justice is a better system. I think that plan can also be in the school in a situation like this," Middleton said.

Evelyn Novak, superintendent of the Chilliwack school district, said a review is necessary following harsh criticisms from parents who felt the punishment was too extreme.  But she said a policy change is not necessarily assured. No wonder their kids were smoking pot.

"When we talk review, we're not necessarily going to change our regulation or policy. But we are trying to look at making sure we do reflect our community and that we do listen to parents," she said.

British Columbia's lower Fraser Valley

The 10 students removed from Sardis Secondary will finish out the semester at another school in the Chilliwack district.

The review is planned for early next year.

The punishment seemed, at first, to be severe until you read that the students can finish the semester at another school. So the only real punishment is having to go to a different school. If they all go to the same school, they are not even separated from their friends. It appears the new school is the one who is being punished more than the miscreants.

But, more importantly, the effect of marijuana on young teens is just starting to come to light. High potency pot is believed by many experts in psychiatry to be responsible for irreversible insanity in one out of six kids under 16. The number decreases with age but even adult users are vulnerable to schizophrenia, paranoia, hallucinations, and the inability to discern reality from fantasy. See the science behind this.

Assisted Suicide for a Depressed Transsexual in Belgium

A transsexual has been helped to die by doctors in Belgium, after a series of failed sex-change operations.

Nathan Verhelst, born a woman, asked for help to end his life on grounds of psychological suffering. He died in a Brussels hospital on Monday.

Cases of recorded deaths from euthanasia on psychological grounds have risen in Belgium

Two doctors concluded he did not have temporary depression. His case received scant media coverage.

Belgium legalised euthanasia in 2002. There were 52 cases of euthanasia on psychological grounds last year.

"He died in all serenity," doctor Wim Distlemans told the Belgian newspaper, Het Laatste Nieuws.

Nathan Verhelst, 44, was born Nancy into a family of three boys. The newspaper, which said it had spoken to him on the eve of his death, reported that he had been rejected by his parents who had wanted another son.

He had three operations to change sex between 2009 and 2012.

"The first time I saw myself in the mirror I felt an aversion for my new body," he was quoted as saying.

First of all, if all 3 sex change operations failed, then 'he' must still be a 'she'. It makes no sense that a person can simply call himself the opposite sex to what he actually is physically.

Second, the parents would appear to be to blame for Nancy's screwed-up view of herself. Surely, some psychological counselling could have corrected that attitude - but that's not politically correct any more is it?

Third, there is no room for God in this story, anywhere. God made Nancy, not Nathan. God can completely change one's attitude of self worth by allowing that person to see how much God loves them. And, there is no opportunity for that person to turn to God and fulfill the purpose of his being here - which is to prepare for eternity. He/she is lost forever thanks to a Godless government!

The hospital said there was an "extremely rigorous procedure" in place before any patient was put to death. "When we have a case which is... complicated, we ask ourselves more questions in order to be certain about the diagnosis," Dr Jean-Michel Thomas said.

The BBC's Matthew Price in Brussels says the number of people opting for euthanasia in Belgium has risen steadily since legalization. Most candidates are over 60 years old and have cancer.

Voluntary euthanasia for those over 18 is relatively uncontroversial in Belgium. Parliament is now considering expanding the law to under 18s as well.

Patients must be capable of deciding for themselves. They must be conscious and have to give a "voluntary, considered and repeated" request to die.

There were 1,432 recorded cases of euthanasia in Belgium in 2012; a 25% increase on the previous year's figure. They represented 2% of all deaths, the AFP news agency reported.

Does Pot make you Crazy?

At a time when there is considerable lobbying to legalize possession of pot, (indeed, it has already happened in Washington state and Uruguay is voting on it next week), significant amounts of research show a strong link between cannabis use and psychosis, ie schizophrenia, paranoia, hallucinations, etc.

From Australia
A new report from John McGrath, M.D., Ph.D., of the University of Queensland, Australia, suggests young adults more vulnerable to psychosis start smoking marijuana at a younger age, an event that could trigger a non-affective psychotic disorder, such as schizophrenia. - See more at:
http://www.livescience.com/6135-marijuana-linked-psychosis.html#sthash.2gXQBZVP.dpuf

 The Downside of High (CBC Nature of Things documentary with Dr David Suzuki)

Teenagers who start smoking marijuana before the age of sixteen are four times more likely to become schizophrenic.

For all young adults, smoking marijuana nearly doubles the risk of developing recurring psychosis, paranoia and hallucinations - the hallmarks of schizophrenia.


Today's super-potent pot may be a big part of the problem. Modern growing techniques have dramatically increased the amount of THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana - ramping up the threat to the developing teenage brain.

Marijuana and mental illness 30 sec trailer
http://www.cbc.ca/player/Nature+of+Things+Promos/ID/1385846605/

But there's an intriguing twist to the story: in the process of cultivating more potent strains of pot, growers have also been breeding out a little-known ingredient called cannabidiol that seems to buffer the effects of THC. So today's high-octane pot actually contains a double-whammy - more psychosis-producing THC, and less of the protective CBD or cannabidiol. See the full documentary:
http://www.cbc.ca/documentaries/natureofthings/2010/downsideofhigh/


Research from the UK (reported in the Telegraph)

The number of cannabis users suffering serious mental or behaviour disorders has increased by half in just four years.
In 2008, leading psychiatrists warned people who smoked super strength were 18 times more likely to suffer a psychotic episode.
“Skunk (super strength pot), which accounts for about 80 per cent of the UK market has an average THC (a psychoactive ingredient) content of 16.2 per cent and ranges up to 46 per cent.
“Old fashioned 60 to 70s cannabis had around 1-2 per cent THC. “
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/10116830/Mental-health-issues-linked-to-cannabis-increase-by-half-in-four-years.html


Research from the UK (reported in the Daily Mail)

Cannabis is a threat to mental health.
Cannabis use is now the biggest single cause of serious mental disorders in the UK, a leading expert warned yesterday.

Up to 80 per cent of new patients at many units have a history of smoking the drug, said consultant psychiatrist Professor Robin Murray.

The stark message comes just three weeks before the Government officially downgrades cannabis to Class C, putting it on the same level as growth hormones and prescription painkillers.

Doctors fear the change will wrongly lead young people to believe the drug is harmless and that more people will try it as they are unlikely to be prosecuted.

Professor Murray, head of psychiatry at the Institute of Psychiatry, said the vast majority of psychotic patients - those who lose contact with reality and are unable to function in their daily lives - have used cannabis.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-205447/Cannabis-causes-mental-illness.html#ixzz2ZBTIWEs7

He added: "Since then, there have been at least four studies that show the use of cannabis, particularly in young people, can significantly increase the likelihood of the onset of psychosis."

Professor Murray himself led a study last year which showed that cannabis users are seven times more at risk of developing mental illness than the population in general.

Experts believe the figures reflect the fact that cannabis typically contains ten times as much tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) - the crucial ingredient which induces the feeling of being "high" - today as it did in the 1960s and 1970s.

Pot and Cancer
Cannabis also causes cancer and lung disease and doctors say it could be responsible for 30,000 deaths a year in the UK.


The Netherlands (reported by BBC)
The famous cannabis-selling coffee shops of the Netherlands are facing new tighter restrictions.
The Dutch government is reclassifying high-strength cannabis to put it in the same category as hard drugs.

It says the amount of the main active chemical in the drug, THC, has gone up, making it far more potent than a generation ago.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-15225270


Livescience.com

Marijuana users sometimes report that pot enhances their desire for sex. But a new review of research on marijuana and sexual health suggests that male smokers could be courting sexual dysfunction. Rany Shamloul, a physician with appointments at the University of Ottawa and Queen's University in Canada as well as the University of Cairo, said "It's a strong message to our younger generations and younger men.”
See more at: http://www.livescience.com/12825-marijuana-men-sexual-function.html#sthash.caagytyZ.dpuf


From Brown University
A variety of physical risk factors can contribute to erectile dysfunction. Factors that may be present for younger men include:
Substance abuse - Chronic use of alcohol, marijuana or other drugs can cause erectile dysfunction and decreased sexual drive.
http://brown.edu/Student_Services/Health_Services/Health_Education/mens_health/erectile_dysfunction.php


Northwoods Ministries 

Aside from erectile dysfunction, male marijuana users have a decreased capacity to father children.

Many of the statistics quoted above are likely to increase, perhaps dramatically, as super strength pot was becoming more and more popular while some of these studies were in progress.

My personal observations of people who smoke pot regularly is that they simply stop maturing. If they started smoking pot at 15 years of age and continued for 25 years, at 40 they would still act, talk and even dress like they did when they were 15. Even their taste in music would not change. And those observations were mostly made before super strength pot became popular.

This may not be true of everyone, but I have seen it frequently enough to know that it is often the case. Look at the people you know who smoke pot. Do you know anyone like that? Do you know any young people who have suddenly become psychotic? I'll bet you do.