Sreemoyee Chatterjee
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Written By: Sreemoyee Chatterjee | Published : October 5, 2018 5:25 PM IST
Cannabis affects brains of teens more than alcohol © Shutterstock
In case you notice a tendency of cannabis abuse in your teenage child, it is time for you to take immediate action and prevent it. A group of Canadian researchers have recently shown that cannabis is more harmful than alcohol for teen brains, according to a media report by BBC News. The research studied links between alcohol and cannabis use and performance on several tests of brain function in 3,826 school students belonging to the age group of 12 to 13 years over 4 years. The researchers found that those teens who were frequent users of cannabis performed less well in terms of memory and impulse control than those who used alcohol.
While the researchers highlighted that both alcohol and cannabis use among teens lead to worsening of memory and impulse control, lower test scores in two consecutive years due to excessive use of cannabis showed that cannabis could have a lasting effect on brain function. This prolonged effect was not found among teens using alcohol.
Interestingly, the study also found that the cannabis had greater effects in younger teens compared to older teens. According to the researchers, this study focuses on the potential cognitive and mental health effects of cannabis. They highlighted that because the brains of teenagers are in the developing state, any form of drug or substance can affect their brain, be it legal or illegal and could have long-lasting impact.
Funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health, the research was conducted by researchers from the University of Montreal, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine and Dalhousie University in Canada. The study appeared in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
