November 05, 2007Marijuana Is Good For SchizophreniaOK, I don't know what to make of this, but Aussie researchers conclude in a recent article: "In essence, the findings of this study suggest that cannabinoids, via their agonistic effects on cannabinoid receptors in the forebrain, may have a potentially useful role in the treatment of high-order cognitive processes known to be impaired in schizophrenia." Fascinating. But I'd like to see this kind of research replicated many times, as it contradicts other research that shows an alleged link between pot use and psychosis--and not in a good way. Posted by Philip Dawdy at November 5, 2007 12:01 AM
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I think if you looked hard enough you'd find that none of the research done indicates that pot use causes psychosis (and no, I haven't touched the stuff in years), well depending on how you define psychosis - does giggling uncontrolably at Fast Food Drive Though Windows Count? Here's a link to a sort of debunking of the pot causes schizophrenia crap: http://www.badscience.net/2007/07/blah-blah-cannabis-blah-blah-blah/#more-476 Besides, here's a drug that we all know causes psychosis - alcohol. Another one, Prozac.... Posted by: Sally at November 4, 2007 11:41 PMGot to love the scientific study of depression in non-human animals. Marijuana Improves Depression in Low Doses, Worsens It in High Doses, Study Says Thursday, October 25, 2007 http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,304996,00.html Posted by: mark p.s. at November 5, 2007 06:52 AMHere's another take on Schizophrenia and nicotine Nicotine use and its correlates in patients with psychosis. "We could not find any differences among nicotine users and non-users in diagnosis, symptoms, side effects, weight, cognitive functions, personality and outcome, cross-sectionally and longitudinally, ruling against the ‘self-medication’ hypothesis." Makes me think psych wards/etc. should have 'pot breaks', instead of 'smoke breaks'. It also makes me think we are far off from any solid answers for treatment. Marijuana may generally be more helpful than harmful for most people (at least in small amounts), and it may not ever directly cause schizophrenia or any other kind of psychotic break. But some people are more sensitive to it than most, and for some it can exacerbate an already difficult situation. Unless a person knows how it will affect them personally, it should not be assumed that it will be harmless. Everyone is different in the way they will be affected by marijuana, as they are in the way they are affected by all kinds of drugs, and caution is always called for. The potential of marijuana to cause problems is not just theoretical, but based on personal experiences that some people have had. For some it can lead to sleep deprivation, for example(which is seldom a good thing), as can be seen in the narrative linked to below: http://www.mindfreedom.org/personal-stories/david-w-oaks/ Posted by: Kent at November 5, 2007 12:19 PMMy problem with the psuedo studies that claim marijuana causes mental illness are along these lines. My father suspected when I was a teenager that I smoked marijuana. For years he used this as proof that I was mentally ill. So if we accept these studies as valid, the bad guys use them to claim that anyone who has ever smoked marijuana needs an anti psychotic med - just wait...still some people have good reactions to it, some don't. For me, pot usually was a lot of fun but sometimes it made me extremely anxious to the point where I decided not to use it again many years ago. Posted by: Sally at November 5, 2007 03:06 PMPost a comment
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