Study Shows Marijuana Use In Teens Correlates To Decreasing IQ

retroworks writes "The BBC reports on a paper published in the U.S.'s Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences showing a correlation between persistent, regular cannabis use and risk of lower IQ. The study finds the risk particularly correlates use of cannabis by teenagers who use the drug "four times a week year after year." The more people smoked, the greater the loss in IQ. Reviewers of the study at King's College Institute of Psychiatry states that the data and methodology are exceptional, but she also cautions that there may be another explanation, such as depression, which could lower IQ while stimulating marijuana use. The study does not mention or rule out 'nocebo' effects, i.e. just feeling stupid for spending your teens hanging out with potheads."

Comments

News Flash

[Lumpy]

Drinking Wine or Beer 4 times a day year after year will reduce your IQ. Over use of ANYTHING will cause problems.

Re:News Flash

[sonamchauhan]

4 times a week, not 4 times a day.

Re:News Flash

[Anonymous Coward]

Teenagers who are in the "I know everything" stage can be very frustrating when you try to explain the dangers.

Probably because you're an adult in the "I know everything" stage, and think you know the dangers. Funnily enough, teenagers with internet access can easily learn more about a given subject than you know offhand, and it may surprise you that some of them actually research marijuana before smoking it. Which is often more than their parents can manage before laying down the law to them about it.

In fact your entire attitude stinks, and teenagers can smell that a mile away. The teenager doesn't actually think he knows everything, but he has learnt that his parents don't. Yet many of them still insist on being treated as unquestioned authorities. Hence your "frustration" when you're not treated that way. It's a parenting problem, not a growing up problem.

I'll bet $100 all you know is what you've uncritically read in the sensationalist media. For instance, you seem to think marijuana addiction exists. There is no scientific basis for this idea, as you should know if you want to engage in a serious discussion with your teenager about what you believe the risks to be. Talking about marijuana addicts just makes you look ridiculous, I'm afraid, and that is why you fail.

Re:News Flash

[Radres]

But pot use after age 18 doesn't have long-term affects on IQ, only for the time immediately after consuming the drug. This was an important point lost in the summary. So, marijuana should be illegal for young kids to smoke. If marijuana were legal and regulated like alcohol, we would see less young people abusing the drug.

Re:News Flash

[CanHasDIY]

Do you have any evidence to support that assertion?

The medical community has known for some time that marijuana has adverse effects.

Lol, it never fails to amuse me when someone lambastes another for making an un-backed statement without citing any evidence... moments before they themselves make an un-backed statement without citing any evidence.

To that end, who is this 'medical community' of which you speak, and what are these 'adverse affects' you so ambiguously refer to?

Re:News Flash

[mikael_j]

In my experience most of those in favor of cannabis legalization aren't blind to the adverse effects, it's just that they're sick to death of seeing time and time again how some study proclaims "Teenagers who are genetically predisposed to end up with severe mental illness may have slightly earlier onset of their condition if they smoke marijuana on a daily basis" and how the media and those who fervently hate cannabis turn that into "POT MAKES YOU CRAZY!".

Re:News Flash

[ebh]

Short form: If you admit it, you're addicted. If you don't, you're in denial.

Re:News Flash

[Hatta]

For one reason or another, the pot smoking community seems to get all defensive and denies all allegations backed by science almost as fiercely as denial of global warming or evolution.

We don't deny that there are adverse effects. We deny that the adverse effects are sufficient enough to justify imprisioning people. Life is full of risks, and the fun parts even more so. A country that allows people to ride motorcycles for recreation has no place telling us Cannabis is too unsafe for recreation.

Re:News Flash

[hazah]

We all trust what the government says. There couldn't possibly be any motive for the same entity that is responsible for the existance of the DEA to say anything that would support their own agenda. Couldn't be that at all. Shoving the same article into every post you make doesn't reinforce the point... especially if it's utter bullshit.

Re:Mods

[i kan reed]

Propaganda by whom, and for what purpose? How do you identify it as propaganda instead of legitimate science? You have to answer these basic questions and support your answers with evidence before anybody is going to buy into your conspiracy theories.

Re:Mods

[Immerman]

recreational use implies abuse

I assume your stance on this extends to alcohol and caffeine as well, correct? Personally I wouldn't call a couple glasses of beer/wine/etc at a party abuse, but it's most definitely recreational.

Science vs. propaganda

[betterunixthanunix]

Scientific conclusion: heavy marijuana use amongst teenagers is correlated with decreasing IQ.

Propaganda: MARIJUANA LOWERS IQ

The difference is in how this is presented. A scientific presentation cannot possibly say that marijuana is a causal factor until at least all of the following are addressed:

1. What can cause IQ to change over time? As someone else pointed out, it is entirely possible that sitting around doing nothing all day will lower IQ, and so marijuana's role may just be in discouraging teenagers from participating in activities that maintain or increase their IQ. Marijuana can increase appetite -- it is possible that eating too much junk food lowers IQ.
2. There may be a particular trait that attracts some teenagers to smoke pot heavily, which also causes them to have lower IQs later in life.
3. Teenagers who smoke marijuana may be participants in a subculture that involves other activities that cause lower IQ.
4. Marijuana may be produced using fertilizers or pesticides that are also absorbed when the drug is used, and those might cause lower IQ.
5. Marijuana smoke may contain chemicals that cause lower IQ; maybe other methods of taking the drug will not have such an effect (or maybe other methods are even worse).

There are a lot of things that can cause the results the scientists saw -- which is good news for them, since it means they have plenty of questions to answer. Unfortunately, the media will see this, ignore the part about heavy users, spend no time discussing confounding factors, and jump right on the "marijuana is bad" bandwagon. Typical, unsurprising, propaganda-driven approach.