A Western University study found the Marijuana use during pregnancy can negatively affect brain development in children.

What does the study say?

Led by Mohammed H. SarikahyaPhD student at Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistrythe study found that exposure of pregnant rats to THC can cause long-lasting changes in their anxiety levels and in their brain’s addictive circuitry.

According to SarikahyaThe male and female offspring in the study responded differently to THC exposure, with the female rats appearing to be much more resistant to the effects, while the male rats “performed poorly on almost all metrics,” the study assessed.

Sarikahya noticed this “For the first time, prenatal cannabis exposure can induce profound fatty acid adaptations that may be responsible for these pathological changes.”

The study also showed that that male offspring were particularly prone to increased anxiety and their brain regions associated with addiction and reward were severely affected.

“These effects on brain development might manifest in sons’ adulthood, as sons experienced higher levels of anxiety and depression, as well as a lack of emotional regulation,” said the study, which also found that women tended to be immune to long-term effects.

“[In adulthood]women often [experienced] no anxiety, no changes in brain activity, no depression, no changes in reward processing, and indeed very little protein changes,” Sarikahya said.

As reported by The Gazettethe study was conducted with only “a six percent dose of THC.” However, Sarikahya noted that “these effects on brain development from small to moderate doses of THC are of concern.”

Conclusions:

The researcher points out that cannabis is tending to be used more and more to solve common problems associated with pregnancy, such as anxiety and nausea. He stressed the need for additional research on how marijuana affects pregnancy and descendants later in life.

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