United States: researchers remind us of the risks of cannabis use among teenagers

In the United States, recent research suggests that, while the Cannabis problème, notamment dans les cas de surdosage, car il arrive que les doses autorisées soient dépassées. Risk to brain development among younger people. And just because cannabis is less deadly doesn't mean it's not dangerous.

Sion Kim Harris, a researcher for adolescent substance abuse research at Boston Children's Hospital Specifically explain that adolescents who engage in heavy consumption often show impairments in their neurocognitive performance and brain function.

The THC would prove to be a hindrance in the development of brain areas, particularly in adolescents. The path of electrical signals in the brain is not completely formed until around age 25, and can adapt, or even change, more rapidly in young people than in adults. THC binds to the same receptors as endocannabinoids. anandamide, a cannabinoid naturally produced by the body. If these neurons remain less active, a young person's brain will develop less, with damage to memory, for example.

American therapists therefore encourage teenagers not to smoke cannabis before adulthood and legal age.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse It also compiled statistics on drug and alcohol use among adolescents in the United States. The study reveals a clear decline in cannabis use among young people, even as many U.S. states have legalized cannabis: among 13-year-olds, 12% had already used it in 2016, compared to 15% the previous year.

Kim Harris also discusses mental illness when cannabis consumption begins early. «In families where some cases have been diagnosed, we notice that adolescents develop cases of schizophrenia at a younger age than their parents.» In this situation, cannabis proves to be a factor that will favor the onset of the illness, which will affect their abilities once they become adults.

Mehdi Bautier