Although recreational and medicinal marijuana (cannabis) is increasingly available across the U.S., public and professional awareness that cannabis use may adversely affect brain health is critical, according to the American Heart Association’s first scientific statement on the subject.
«There’s a lot of uncertainty in the medical community about the health effects of marijuana. This scientific statement is intended to guide health care professionals in having a balanced and intentional discussion with patients about the potential known and unknown effects of marijuana on brain health,» said writing group Chair Fernando D. Testai, M.D., Ph.D., FAHA, a professor of neurology and rehabilitation at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
This is the Association’s first scientific statement on cannabis and brain health, following a statement on marijuana and cardiovascular health, published in August 2020. Both statements are important since marijuana use in the U.S. is increasing, particularly among adolescents and young adults, with about one-third of 12th graders and nearly half of college students reporting marijuana use in 2018. In addition, the use of marijuana medicinally and/or recreationally has been legalized or decriminalized in many states across the U.S. in the past 2 decades, and the concentration of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, the psychoactive component in marijuana) in cannabis products has increased significantly, from about 4% in 1995 to 15% in 2018.
The most studied chemicals in cannabis are THC and CBD. THC is the compound in marijuana that gives the sensation of being high. CBD (cannabidiol) has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties but does not have psychoactive effects. The potential therapeutic benefits of CBD continue to be investigated in clinical trials.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) classify cannabis as a Schedule I controlled substance, on par with heroin and LSD, for having a «high potential for abuse and little to no medical benefit.» In contrast, CBD is legal when derived from hemp, which is the same species of plant as cannabis and contains less than 0.3% THC.
To fully understand the potential impact of marijuana, it’s important to know that the human body naturally produces compounds called endocannabinoids that are similar to those in marijuana. Endocannabinoids are involved in the regulation of many body processes throughout life (including learning, memory, pain control and sleep), and the action of endocannabinoids is essential to prenatal brain development and to brain maturation during adolescence.
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Materials provided by American Heart Association. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.