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Children of mothers who used cannabis during pregnancy are at greater risk of mental disorders than children of those who did not use medical or recreational cannabis during pregnancy. Children whose mothers consumed the THC-enhanced plant during their fetal development are also more likely to experience substance abuse problems later in their teens.

On the pages of the specialized electronic edition of national hemp growers, the conclusions of our overseas colleagues have already been described, based on studies that indicate the negative impact on the body of adolescents of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). New data from US scientists once again indicate that THC negatively affects the fetus in the womb, putting at risk his health, as well as cognitive abilities. That is why we would like to draw the attention of our esteemed readers and listeners to the results of the studies that were published on September 12, 2022, in the Journal of the American Medical Association and are a continuation of previous studies that began back in 2020.

Children exposed to medical cannabis or marijuana in utero are more likely to develop symptoms of psychopathology, such as depression and anxiety, according to a BRAIN Lab study from the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis. Even at 11 or 12 years of age, these children may still show signs of mental illness that result from maternal cannabis use during pregnancy.

Previously ongoing 2020 studies demonstrated that young children who were exposed to cannabis during pregnancy were more likely to have sleep problems, lower birth weight, and poorer cognitive abilities, among other health problems compared to children who were pregnant. whose mothers did not use medical or recreational cannabis.

A new study found that exposure to cannabis during pregnancy was most severe when THC-enriched cannabis was consumed after the pregnancy became known. David Baranger, a researcher at the BRAIN Lab, aimed to determine whether these negative symptoms persist as children approach adolescence. In the new study, Mr. Baranger analyzed data from 10,500 children who had previously taken part in the 2020 survey (bearing in mind that in 2022, the average age of these children was about ten years old).

According to researchers from the BRAIN Lab, the children of mothers who used cannabis during pregnancy are at greater risk of clinical mental disorders than children of those who did not use medical or recreational cannabis during pregnancy. Children whose mothers consumed the THC-enhanced plant during their fetal development are also more likely to experience substance abuse problems later in their teens. In particular, according to Mr. Baranger, “After children exposed to cannabis in the womb turn 14 or 15 years old, we expect a further increase in the number of mental disorders or other diseases. This growth will continue until the age of 20.”

Commentary of the specialists of the “Ukrainian Industrial Hemp Association”

The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) is a weekly international medical science journal published by the American Medical Association. As of 2010, JAMA is the most widely read medical journal in the world.

Data for the 2022 study of children and their mothers was taken from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (study ABCD), which analyzed nearly 12,000 children and their parents or caregivers. The ABCD study is funded by the National Institutes of Health and their federal partners and “launched” in 2016 with participants enrolled at 22 centers across the United States.

Undoubtedly, this hypothesis requires careful and comprehensive verification within the framework of the scientific research necessary for this, however, given the fact that several studies have already indicated the negative impact of cannabis with a high content of a controlled substance on the physical and psychological development of children and adolescents, we can say that the use tetrahydrocannabinol in the treatment of minors is at least subject to the most severe control.

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