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UK: Cannabis "stunts growth" of unborn child

Surgery Door

Tuesday 08 Jan 2002

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Women who take cannabis while pregnant may hamper their unborn child's
development, UK research suggests.

According to a study published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and
Gynaecology, babies born to women who frequently use cannabis while
pregnant are smaller in size - a marker that often indicates a damaging
effect on the unborn child.

With the recent change in status of cannabis from a class B to a class C
drug, a team of Bristol-based researchers decided to investigate whether it
is safe to use the drug during pregnancy. Their results show, however, that
cannabis has similar effects to alcohol and tobacco, damaging the unborn
child and resulting in lower birth weights.

The findings are the latest from an on-going study into child health in the
UK. The study, called Children of the 90s project, or Avon Longitudinal
Study of Parents and Children, monitors the health and development of
14,000 children from the time they are in the womb.

Researcher Kate Northstone said, "We have found a small reduction in birth
weight in those babies whose mothers smoked cannabis at least once a week
before and during their pregnancy."

In the study, 5 per cent of mothers had used cannabis at some time before
they became pregnant and this dropped to less than 3 per cent while they
were pregnant.

The women who smoked cannabis had similar characteristics to those women
who are already known to be most at risk of having babies with low birth
weight - younger and first-time mothers, and those who use other substances
such as alcohol and tobacco. In the Bristol study, almost 70 per cent of
cannabis users also smoked cigarettes regularly.

The adverse effects of smoking on birth weight are well known, but the
association between cannabis use and lower birth weight was still evident
after smoking and other factors were taken into account.

Long-term follow-up of the children will reveal any adverse effects on a
child's overall development. Until these results are available, the team
recommend women err on the side of caution and avoid all forms of substance
use when pregnant.

 

 

 

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