A study shows teenagers using cannabis may be 11 times more likely to develop a psychotic disorder than non-users. This relationship seems particularly strong during adolescence, highlighting the increased potency of cannabis as a significant factor. Credit: SciTechDaily.
com Research links teen cannabis use to a significantly higher risk of psychotic disorders, emphasizing the impact of increased THC potency. A new study published today (May 22) in the journal Psychological Medicine estimates that teens using cannabis are at an 11 times higher risk of developing a psychotic disorder compared to teens not using cannabis. This finding suggests that the association between cannabis and psychotic disorders may be stronger than indicated by previous research, which has relied largely on older data when cannabis was less potent than today.
For context, the average THC potency of cannabis in Canada has increased from roughly 1% in 1980 to 20% in 2018. Researchers from the University of Toronto, the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), and ICES, linked recent population-based survey data from over 11,000 youth in Ontario, Canada, to health service use records including hospitalizations, emergency department (ED) visits, and outpatient visits. The study is the first to show an age-dependent association between self-reported cannabis use and subsequent psychotic disorder diagnosis, which adds to a growing body of research on the mental health risks associated with cannabis.
A.
