Study: cannabis use during pregnancy associated with autism
A recent study in Canada found a link between cannabis use during pregnancy and the risk of a child being pregnant. child develops autism.
«Women who used cannabis during pregnancy were 1.5 times more likely to have a child with autism,» said study author Dr. Darine El-Chaâr, a maternal fetal medicine specialist and clinical researcher at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute in Canada.
«These are not reassuring results. We strongly discourage cannabis use during pregnancy and breastfeeding,» she said.
The study, published in the journal Nature, examined data from every birth in Ontario between 2007 and 2012. From the half-million women in this data pool, the researchers then narrowed the study to 2,200 women who reported using cannabis during pregnancy, without mixing it with tobacco, alcohol or opioids.
The study did not know how much or what type of cannabis women consumed during pregnancy. Nor did the study know at what stage of pregnancy or how often women consumed it. And while the study could only show an association, not cause and effect, the researchers said they were doing their best to eliminate confounding factors.
The pain reduction, said El-Chaâr, is the most common reason for consuming cannabis during pregnancy.
«It helps with various ailments they may have or for nausea and vomiting during pregnancy,» said El-Chaâr. «Some people (have reported) that they use it to sleep or to reduce stress. Still others use it recreationally; it's just part of their routine.»
The first trimester of pregnancy is the most sensitive time for fetal brain development, said El-Chaâr. Studies have found cannabis receptors in the brains of animals as early as 5 and 6 weeks gestational age, she said.
«We can hypothesize that if there are cannabinoid receptors and the baby's brain is exposed, it can have (an) effect on brain development».
French statistics on the number of pregnant women who use cannabis are lacking. A study made in Marseille found that 10% of pregnant women had used cannabis during pregnancy. In the United States, various studies estimate that this percentage ranges from 2 to 8%.
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roulebouboule
August 26, 2020 at 15 h 31 min
How I'd love to see a bit of restraint from scientists on autism when I see the load of crap that's already been said on the subject...
Well, in France, for decades now, thanks to the central place of psychoanalysis in psychology and psychiatry, autism has been blamed on the mother (they might agree with the authors of this study on this point...!). Autism is due to a mother's attachment deficit (crocodile mother). We've known for nearly 20 years that this isn't true, but a large proportion of carers still believe it, to the detriment of autistic children and their families. http://www.autisme-france.fr/offres/file_inline_src/577/577_P_21036_15.pdf
In fact, it's vaccines: In 1998, a study published in the prestigious medical journal «The Lancet» suggested a new lead. Vaccines were the cause of autism. This was later proved to be completely false, but many parents are still convinced and don't vaccinate their children... https://sante.lefigaro.fr/article/une-vaste-etude-dement-une-nouvelle-fois-le-lien-entre-vaccin-et-autisme/
It's the gluten: Several so-called studies, of poor quality, have rejected gluten and milk casein as a cause of autism... But it's still not true: https://spectredelautisme.com/trouble-du-spectre-de-l-autisme-tsa/guerir-l-autisme/
But no, it's pesticides: some studies suggest a link between autism and pesticides, but these studies, like previous ones, are based on statistical study and can often be biased. While the hypothesis that some cases of autism are influenced by pesticides remains debated, several new studies cast doubt on this...
In fact, the only thing really proven is the genetic cause of autism...
So I suggest to all the people who publish all this crap about autism that they think a little harder before coming to conclusions based on pre-studies of dubious methodology. Autistic people thank you in advance.
It's not always easy being autistic, but seeing the different lobbies use your particularity to support their beliefs is quite unbearable.
Today's autistic people receive very little help, having to fend for themselves most of the time. Some studies seem to show what many autistic people are experiencing, i.e. real relief when using cannabis. But instead of trying to help us, research into medical cannabis continues to be banned (in France at least, but in fact all over the world, as no pharmaceutical company is prepared to invest money in a «medicine» that it won't be the only one to sell...).
PS: It would also have been interesting to count all the words that cannabis was accused of before we realized that the studies that led to its conclusions were biased (when they existed): Cannabis kills, cannabis is neurotoxic, one joint is the equivalent of 10 cigarettes, cannabis is extremely dangerous on the road, new cannabis is much more dangerous than in the 70s, one joint makes you stupid for a month, cannabis is a gateway drug, etc..., etc....