Comments on: Heavy marijuana use shrinks brain parts

By: "Radical" Russ Belville

"Radical" Russ Belville — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 19:19:23 +0000

You’re wrong, but regardless – even if it is harmful, do you think I should be imprisoned for using cannabis?

By: gsizzle

gsizzle — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 16:50:44 +0000

I am really just awestruck at the depth of denial that you guys are all in. There are tremendous lengths that some of you fanatics will go to in order to deny the legitimate scientific studies of today. Sure, there was a single rhesus monkey study that was inadequate and should be disregarded for it’s results, but there has since been a wave of finding that legitimately point to a correlation. Now, it is true that a correlation is not always causation, but is people have known the effects of cannabinoids on the brain are harmful for almost one hundred years. Currently, scientists are faced with an issue of pinpointed the exact changes to the brain but studying the brain is such a complex and profound task. However, breakthroughs in accurate knowledge is on the brink on coming through. Until then, it’s important to not underestimate the mental dangers from this drug. It should not be made used just because it isn’t yet “proven” to be harmful, it should be abstained from until it’s proven to be safe, but the studies are currently leaning the other way.

By: Radical Russ

Radical Russ — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 16:15:29 +0000

Well put, Jesper, it’s something Dr. Mitch and I tackle all the time. Does pot cause X in people, or does X in people steer them toward smoking pot?

By: Jesper Kristensen

Jesper Kristensen — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 11:37:24 +0000

Admittedly it sounds scary to be told that some brain parts might be smaller, but we should all notice – as RR said about the list of words – that the real-life effects of such findings remain unclear. Most people don’t even have the faintest idea what the amygdala and hippocampus is supposed to do.

Let me give an example. It has also been found that people with a high level of anxiety have LARGER amygdalas than the control group. So here a TOO BIG brain part is associated with actual mental disorder.

Though the study is kinda crap due to the small sample size it one could argue that the heavy users are perhaps people who are less likely to experience anxiety than their peers, hence their experience with pot is so much better because they hardly ever get anxiety attacks.

In other words these people may have self-recruited themselves to pot smoking, and that means their initial brain was the cause of their pot smoking and not the other way around.

Figuring out the causal error is hard work, but too many people don’t realize that because they are woefully untrained in the scientific method.

By: Kim Sweet

Kim Sweet — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 15:49:50 +0000

Interesting article, however, the conclusion reached is bit backwards. The study found smaller brain parts and a possible link to marijuana as the causitive agent. Since marijuana causes neurogenisis (regrowth of new neurons) in the hippocampus it is more than likely that these users were self-medicating themselves and that the cause of these smaller brain parts was due to other factors. The most likely culprits are environmental toxins especially lead and mercury. Lead and mercury pesist in the environment and have many primary (burning gasoline and coal), and secondary sources (rain and water supplies).When lead and mercury poisoning occurs in the womb when the fetus is small and more susceptible it will affect the brain (ie. smaller hippocampus).