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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Cannabis may not have "substantial" damaging effect
Surgery Door
Tuesday 01 Jul 2003 US experts have cast doubt on the notion that long-term, recreational use of cannabis causes substantial negative effects on brain function. A team from the University of California, San Diego found that the only damaging side effect was a minimal malfunction in the areas of learning and forgetting. The study looked at 15 previous research studies on the non-acute effects of cannabis on the neurocognitive performance of adult human subjects. Looking at 704 long-term cannabis users and 484 people who did not use the drug, the study's authors say there is "very little evidence of deleterious effects". However, they do point out that there is "a very small effect in learning new information". Psychiatrist Dr Igor Grant, the study's senior author, says that the difficulties involved in learning and forgetting suggest that chronic long-term cannabis use results in selective memory defects. Dr Grant and colleagues say that their research is particularly important as it combats arguments against the use of cannabis for medical reasons. "If we barely find this tiny effect in long-term heavy users of cannabis, then we are unlikely to see deleterious side effects in individuals who receive cannabis for a short time in a medical setting," said Dr Grant. The team also highlights that the negative effects that they found among cannabis users could also have been due to the fact that they also had a tendency to use other drugs, such as alcohol and amphetamines. The research is published in the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society.
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