Early cannabis use and onset of psychotic illness link strengthened

[OZ Stoners]

There has long been an association between cannabis use and age at onset of psychosis; however the nature of that association remains unclear. Researchers have yet to conclude whether cannabis is causal in its association or not, or whether other factors such as age or gender better explain the association. A team from WA Health services, University of Western Australia and the University of ...

 

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[louise]

It's a strange sort of 'link'... doing the math, that means most of the subjects (that smoked weed during their teens) were diagnosed during the peak period for diagnosis... just like their none smoking peers... oddly enough this works out to 7-8 years after they first smoke weed.

 

How the hell does this strengthen any "relationship"?

 

 

 

They also don't know why cannabis is more harmful at a younger age... because their study doesn't show any difference relating to age.

Edited April 2, 2013 by louise

[pisspotgrower]

i believe its just another study that proves not everything is good for everyone.....lots of ppl die from penuts each year without an outcry to "ban" them, just as weed isnt for everyone....so same same

[Cosmic Bud]

Same as LSD, no evidence, yet compelled to create a link due to typical behaviorism & psychoanalysis of individual's exhibiting temporary psychotic symptoms induced by a shifted state of consciousness. When you compare the 1) mundane and sober brain scans to 2)psychedelic mind & 3)mental illness. The correlation of chemical distributions of a drug induced mind are closer to mental disorder than sober processes.

Is this bad or good? Well like with everything there is a duality (good or bad), which is an interpretation of the observer. So basically whats the harm in giving children cannabis in moderation (if sick or in pain for example) as apposed to no cannabis at all? and before you answer that, remember the food is unfit to eat, the air is unfit to breathe, the water is unfit to drink and the socio-economic environment is brainwashing them to be ignorant, idle and stupid.

Of course if the kid abuses the cannabis heavily they can develop mental disorders later in life due to disrupting the natural chemical growth during the critical stages of cognitive development.

I've seen too many documentaries about parents giving their children heavy dosages of cannabis to treat disorders and illness to such a degree that it literally saves the fucking kids life and improves the life experience of the entire family, especially the child who is now given a chance to excel and live a normal life without been debilitated with pharmaceuticals and constant hardship/disabilities.

[pisspotgrower]

not 100% sure but did read somthing a few years ago in a study ( ill try find again ) saying that canabis use has risen so many 1000% percent over the years thought out the world but the percantage of ppl who get a type of psychotis say stayed steady...so if canabis causes problems in a majoriy of ppl who use it shouldnt the second figure rise aswell

[VOSTOK]

Quote("“Although if we were better able to identify those young people at ultra high risk of developing schizophrenia, we could target cannabis use in these people, as potentially modifiable factors in their disease course.”) bullshit...I agree with above Louise 

[Sir PsychoHashy]

In general agreement with most of the above comments, a lot of these sorts of studies seem to be flawed in either/or their methodology and interpretation.  However, surely we all have to recognise that any substance that alters brain chemistry has the potential to cause great harm to the developing brain, or our adult brains for that matter.  I personally would never shy away from strongly discouraging the use of any mind altering substance by young people, particularly 14 years or less, probably even 16 but that would be the pot calling the kettle black in my case. 

[Matanuska Thunder]

so many problems with this article, but my first thought is -which came first, psychosis or self-medication? 

 

 

“Those patients who used cannabis at age 12, had a similar trajectory of illness to those who were first exposed to cannabis at 19,” he says.

• AKA age of first cannabis use has no impact on 'illness development

 

"The reasons why earlier cannabis use may be more harmful are unclear and no robust evidence yet exists."

• WTF make up my mind

Edited April 2, 2013 by Matanuska Thunder

[louise]

True Matti, in the study the researchers admit that self medication is still a plausible explanation for the findings.

 

Interestingly, the lit review shows that the more participants in a study, the bigger the gap between intitation to cannabis and the onset of disorder. This suggests that the 'relationship' may be a result of sample size, rather than any direct relationship between lasting psychosis and cannabis use.

  

I only have access to the abstract, lit review and a portion of the methodology atm, once I get full access I will post again.

 

Relating to the 'news' article, the words 'direct and linear' have been cherry picked from the study and used out of context. The study does not directly link cannabis with onset of illness.

[Ford Fairlane]

Full text of article

 

 

Schizophr Bull-2013-Stefanis-251-4.pdf