Yet another study shows the dangers associated with marijuana
Christopher Tremoglie
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Numerous studies have shown the detrimental effects of regular marijuana use. It can cause permanent IQ loss, decline in cognitive functions, brain abnormalities, and problems with emotional development. Other studies revealed links between cannabis use and mental health problems such as depression, anxiety, suicide ideation, and psychotic episodes. Yet, despite these dangerous ramifications, marijuana’s ill effects are regularly ignored. Instead, the drug gets hailed as a whimsical herb that should be legalized. It’s the marijuana paradox.
But as more states continue to push for its legalization, another study was published last month that showed even more problems that come with using marijuana. Research from Northwestern Medicine revealed that “recent and long-term marijuana use” is linked to “changes in the human epigenome.” It’s the latest discovery in a long line of problematic developments associated with using the drug.
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“Despite its growing popularity, as well as recent legalization by several states, the effect of marijuana on epigenetic factors has not been well studied,” said Lifang Hou, senior author of the report and chief of Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention. “We previously identified associations between marijuana use and the aging process as captured through DNA methylation. We wanted to further explore whether specific epigenetic factors were associated with marijuana and whether these factors are related to health outcomes.”
Epigenetics is the study of how behavior and environment can affect the workings of human genes.
The study consisted of data from more than 900 adults, Northwestern Medicine’s news center reported. Scientists examined “blood samples taken five years apart” of people who participated in a previous study, Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults. Participants were then surveyed for “recent marijuana use and estimated cumulative use and then performed DNA methylation profiling on their blood samples to reveal epigenetic changes associated with marijuana use.” Scientists were then able to link marijuana use to human epigenome changes through further analysis, according to the news center. The details of the research can be read here.
“In our study, we observed associations between cumulative marijuana use and multiple epigenetic markers across time,” Hou said. “Interestingly, we consistently identified one marker that has previously been associated with tobacco use, suggesting a potential shared epigenetic regulation between tobacco and marijuana use. The observed marijuana markers were also associated with cell proliferation, infection, and psychiatric disorders, however, additional studies are needed to replicate and verify these findings.”
It’s a harrowing revelation that should have implications on why marijuana must be considered a destructive narcotic. And while the study stipulated that it did not “establish a causal relationship between marijuana use and epigenetic changes, nor between those epigenetic changes and observed health outcomes,” it could pave the way for future studies regarding the dangers associated with using marijuana. The data obtained in this lab work provided invaluable information for the foundation of future research.
“This research has provided novel insights into the association between marijuana use and epigenetic factors,” said Drew Nannini, first author of the study and a postdoctoral fellow in the Hou lab. “Additional studies are needed to determine whether these associations are consistently observed in different populations. Moreover, studies examining the effect of marijuana on age-related health outcomes may provide further insight into the long-term effect of marijuana on health.”
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This isn’t the first study by Northwestern Medicine that found a link between marijuana and its calamitous effects on people. In 2013, it discovered the link between regular use of marijuana and abnormal changes in brain structure “related to working memory.” It revealed that such irregularities correlate with “a poor working memory performance” that resembles “schizophrenia-related brain abnormalities.” Additionally, these problems contribute to poor performance “on memory tasks,” which, in turn, can lead to “poor academic performance and everyday functioning.” The study was another example of why any push to legalize marijuana is ill-advised.
It’s time to stop positively portraying marijuana in society. Too many studies have revealed its dangers. Through relentless propaganda campaigns that span decades, much of the population has been indoctrinated to believe that it’s a benevolent drug instead of the infectious drain on society it is. Our country doesn’t deserve the bad ideas and poor legislative decisions of the push for national marijuana legalization. People deserve to be protected from drugs and bad policies, not poisoned by them.