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Research on pot and sperm quality, gene expression, and child development.
July 28, 2022
KEY POINTS
- Paternal consumption of marijuana prior to conception has been found in rodent studies to alter offspring brain development.
- Children whose fathers consumed marijuana during their partner's pregnancy may be at higher risk of psychotic symptoms.
- Pot consumption can trigger epigenetic changes in gene expression, which fathers can pass along to their children.
- Not all human studies of pot's effects on male fertility are consistent. A dose-dependent relationship between pot and male fertility may exist.
Accumulating evidence suggests that a man’s lifetime cannabis consumption can influence his fertility as well as the health and development of his future children. While occasional use may not have terrible consequences, prospective fathers (and their partners) should be mindful of how marijuana use, especially in the months leading up to conception, can affect sperm—and the expression of genes those sperm pass on to offspring.
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This disturbing evidence has significant ramifications for #publichealth for the entire community. Cannabis as a predictor of limb anomalies was more potent than tobacco or alcohol. Cannabinoid access should be restricted to protect public health and the community genome/epigenome transgenerationally.
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Researchers from the Addiction and Mental Health Group at the University of Bath (UK) have systematically analyzed the relationship between the types of cannabis people use and their addiction and mental health problems. Their work draws on 20 studies involving almost 120,000 people.
After alcohol and nicotine, cannabis is the most widely used drug globally. The latest estimates from the UK suggest that over the last year, around one in five individuals between the ages of 16 and 24 had used cannabis.
The new study, published in The Lancet Psychiatry, suggests that people who use high-potency cannabis are more likely to experience addiction than those using low-potency products. It also suggests that people using high-potency cannabis are more likely to experience a psychotic disorder, such as schizophrenia.
These findings may help to explain why more people have received treatment for cannabis problems over recent years. Data from the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction show a 76% increase in people entering treatment for cannabis addiction in the past decade.
Lead author Kat Petrilli, from the University of Bath's Department of Psychology, explained, "Our systematic review found that people who use higher-potency cannabis could be at increased risk of addiction as well as psychosis when compared to people who use cannabis products with lower potencies.
"These results are important in the context of harm reduction, which aims to minimize the negative consequences associated with drug use. While the safest level of use for cannabis is of course 'no use,' it is important to acknowledge that a significant number of people across the world use cannabis regularly, and to ensure they can make informed decisions that could reduce any possible harms associated with it."
Further Reading
- All Young Cannabis Users Face Psychosis Risk.
- Mulling up Cannabis and psychosis – Lancet Warning on Cannabis and Psychosis
- C.I.P #CannabisInducedPsychosis - Prominent, Growing & Devastating
- State Empowered Cannabis Induced Psychosis – What Legalizing Weed Does to Public Mental Health
- Cannabis & Psychosis - Irrefutable
- Cannabis and Psychosis Through the Lens of DSM-5
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By Damian McNamara, MA July 25, 2022
Cannabidiol (CBD) products made from hemp have gotten more popular in recent years. But how much can you trust what the label says, compared to what really is in CBD patches, creams, and lotions?
A team of investigators decided to find out. They bought 105 hemp-derived CBD topicals – products designed to be applied to the skin – from physical stores and online sites.
Of the 89 labels that list the amount of CBD, for example, 24% matched what was inside; 58% of the products had more CBD; and the remaining 18% contained less.
Also, more than a third – 35% – of the topicals tested contained delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), including some that claimed to be THC-free.
THC is the compound in marijuana associated with "getting high." But hemp products are allowed to contain 0.3% or less THC, and all the products in this study met the regulation.
People should "be wary of cannabinoid products available in retail stores. The products may not contain the amounts of CBD or THC that are advertised," says lead study author Tory R. Spindle, PhD.
The study was published in JAMA Network Open on July 20.
Can Be Deceiving
CBD topicals are over-the-counter (OTC) products, so the FDA does not regulate them the same way as prescription medications. But at the same time, the agency does not allow OTC products to make claims about health benefits.
"The health claims made on the products, which are often very pricey, may not be supported by clinical research," says Spindle, a researcher at the Johns Hopkins Cannabis Science Laboratory in Baltimore.
He and colleagues found 28% of the 105 products made a therapeutic claim, mostly about helping ease pain and inflammation. And 14% claimed to help improve skin quality or appearance.
"This study really highlights that current regulatory oversight of cannabinoid products is not sufficient," says Spindle, who is also an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
More hemp-derived CBD products are showing up on store shelves and online because of the 2018 Agriculture Improvement Act. This act, more commonly known as the Farm Bill, removed hemp and hemp products from the U.S. controlled substances list…
For JAMA Research Cannabinoid Content and Label Accuracy of Hemp-Derived Topical Products Available Online and at National Retail Stores JAMA Network Open
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Genetic impact of cannabis on in utero life and subsequent generational harms. Of major concern is the rising Community Cannabis Exposure (CCE) impacting exponential cannabinoid genotoxic dose-response relationships. CCE should be carefully restricted to protect the food chain, the genome, and the epigenome of coming generations
- Marijuana users more likely to need emergency care and hospitalization, study finds
- Cannabis use altering key functions like three-dimensional vision
- Delta 8 THC Causing Cancer – Epidemiology of Δ8THC-Related Carcinogenesis in USA
- Is Cannabis the New Thalidomide? Cannabis use and Limb Reduction now clinically associated