Gee, Ya Think?
- Smoking marijuana even just a few times a week may change your brain, according to a study co-authored by a Northwestern University professor.
The study, published Wednesday in the Journal of Neuroscience, reported that young adults who use marijuana on a casual basis show significant structural changes in key regions of the brain affecting emotion and decision-making.
“These are brain regions you don’t want to mess with — period,” said Dr. Hans Breiter, a co-author of the study. Breiter is a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine.
And just what parts of the brain are affected?
- In the marijuana subjects, the parts of the brain that regulate emotion (the amygdala) and influence decision-making (the nucleus accumbens) were “grossly rewired,” according to Breiter, who’s also a psychiatrist at Northwestern Memorial Hospital..
“Even casual use of marijuana can change the brain circuits that change the way you feel and change the way you make decisions, “ said Dr. T. Celeste Napier, professor in the pharmacology and psychiatry departments and director of the Center for Compulsive Behavior and Addiction at Rush University Medical Center.
And the scientists are just discovering this now? How about asking any copper on the street how weed effects those we see smoking it day in and day out? Short circuiting behavioral and decision making processes - golly!
It sure would have been nice to have this study released as states move toward legalizing marijuana.
Oh, and when someone tells you, "the science is settled" regarding anything like marijuana or the origins of the universe or even, say, climate science, point to this study after someone "in the know" says weed is no more dangerous than alcohol.
It sure would have been nice to have this study released as states move toward legalizing marijuana.
Oh, and when someone tells you, "the science is settled" regarding anything like marijuana or the origins of the universe or even, say, climate science, point to this study after someone "in the know" says weed is no more dangerous than alcohol.
Labels: silly people
posted by SCC at 12:01 AM
51 Comments:
I suffer from migraine headaches. Marijuana makes the pain go away.
The only downside. People say I laugh a lot for no reason and I frequently order pizza delivered after midnight.
Like Colorado and Washington, Illinois should legalize possession of up to a couple ounces for personal use and tax the bejeezus out of it.
LOL Yeah they finally gave the Professors ther a joint to light up LMAO , DUHHHHHHHHH
Weed can be harmful and so can alcohol, but you haven't made a case as to why weed should be illegal. Don't worry. You guys will still have plenty of job security if weed becomes legal in all 50 states. Or do you just want to be able to harass people for stupid reasons?
Ahh come on, I don't believe anything that comes out of Northwestern. They said that Porter was innocent and look how that turned out. Toke up people, roll that splif, tune in, turn on and drop out or whatever Timothy Leary said.
From the point of view of the democrat party and liberals, the more folks smoke marijuana the better. It will rewire their brain so as to make them reliable liberal democrat voters. Their rewired brains will more easily believe and accept the party line, for life.
Is marijuana worse than say, a half dozen martinis?
Stoners make dependable voters who will always vote for the politician with D after their name.
It changes most of these mope's brains from being hyped up and ready to shoot and kill, to wanting to just cool out and eat or listen to music. Not a bad trade off. Better than alcohol everyday!
I believe it, but a few more solid, well run studies would be nice.
The "Reefer Madness" crowd has brainwashed a lot of people into believing pot is harmless. Just like welfare will cure poverty, and gun bans stop crime.
Sorry SCC, but this "study" was a pilot, and the number of subjects in it is too small to draw any conclusions.
Do some people get amotivational (i.e. couch locked)? Sure. But lots don't. Many are quite functional and contribute to society. They simply prefer to go home at night, smoke a bowl and watch some TV...
Should anyone under 18 be using it for anything other than true medical reasons? No.
But the simple fact is that Marijuana is not going to kill you from an overdose (alcohol or even water will). We need to stop demonizing it.
All that demonizing it has done is to create a black market underground that's caused crime to fester, driven people to easier-to-procure drugs, and for our civil liberties to be invaded.
We need to legalize it. The only thing that ought to be made illegal is driving or operating machinery while one is stoned. Lightly tax it. Light regulations - no one under 18. Get it at a liquor store.
The reasons for the welfare slugs being such slugs is that we don't make welfare a loan to be paid back. We don't compel them to get at least a HS diploma or GED. And we keep giving them freebies from cradle to grave. So why the hell wouldn't someone want to hang out all day and do nothing if all their basic needs were met?
Government created this problem. They can fix it.
Science is never settled. It constantly evolves as new data is observed. Then there are those who cherry-pick articles to support their view as incontrovertible.
Weed kills all inhabitants!
I just don't believe everything that comes out of Northwestern. Remember they are the ones who let Prosser get away with all his lies about the police.
"You been smokin' dat shit again, boy?"
One study a "fact" does not make--Yoda
Would you rather deal with some drunk getting tossed out of a bar or some confused stoner.
Total BS and disinformation by da machine.
"It changes most of these mope's brains from being hyped up and ready to shoot and kill, to wanting to just cool out and eat or listen to music. Not a bad trade off. Better than alcohol everyday!"
That's why Jamaica is so cool, everybody is chillin.
Obama had his " choom " gang while in college and smoked pot, and a little " blow " when he could afford it. By his own admission.
It doesn't seem to have affected him.
Don't believe everything that you read. The Sun-Times and every other main stream government run media outlet casually omits who funded the study.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy funded the study.
"We need to legalize it...."
-----
No, actually no reason to legalize it. It’s only because low-information voters – you know, the ones that keep spuds like Quinn and Obama in office -- have swallowed the doper propaganda hook, line and sinker that we’re even discussing this.
But oh look, here we have an honest doper telling us something that never makes the press:
http://takimag.com/article/has_pot_become_a_hard_drug_gavin_mcinnes/print#axzz2z97jfqTe
Cannabis represents hippy culture more than any other drug. For that reason alone it should be kept illegal. The martini drinkers I know are ass-kickers who get up early every day and keep the ship afloat. The stoners I know are fucking useless and bring everything down. Sure, they’ll never overdose -- that’s a pity.
One thing I know for sure, as it happened to me in my foolish youth, and I observed in others, pot destroys your short term memory. Can't remember shit while using it after a while.
I had something to say but...forgot.
Dude---That's my skull!
Now, kees me you fool!!!!
Just more culling of the herd...
BUT, Sanjay Gupta doubled down on medical marijuana just last month!
Sorry, but as a cop on the street I would MUCH rather deal with someone who is stoned than one that is drunk. Okay, so the study says that regular weed smoking "grossly rewires" the brain, but it doesn't say the changes effecting emotions and decision making are any worse than what alcohol does to those same areas. How many emotional drunks have we all dealt with that get beer muscles, think they are okay to drive, become street lawyers or (oops) fall off a Michigan Avenue bridge because they are now spiderman. Just sayin.
Easy there SCC, calm down. I'm guessing that 99% of the responsible cannabis-using adults don't want young minds exposed to this drug any more than they would alcohol. When you put up stats like alcohol (500k dead each year) and tobacco (another 500k dead each year) only then you can assume such an extreme stance on the effects of cannabis. I can only imagine the shitbags you deal with who either are using cannabis or have it on them, so don't think we don't realize that, but can't the same (or worse) be said with alcohol users? DUI's, domestics, fights, etc....let's see how many of those crimes are committed by users of cannabis alone vs. cannabis combined with alcohol. I'm guessing it's a mere handful.
Don't push me toward the more harmful recreational drug (alcohol) and I'll extend you the same courtesy. Prohibition didn't work with alcohol and it's not going to work with cannabis either. Regulate, tax, and punish those who distribute to kids or use while driving. I don't want my (precious few) law enforcement resources dealing with non-violent cannabis users. Norm Stamper, the former Chief of Seattle Police department says the same thing.
And most importantly, drug use and abuse starts and ends at home. Nuff said. Don't blame the drug. But hey, please do enjoy your next happy hour or pub crawl.....
there can be a TINY part of the stoned population that can benefit from real, actual "medical marijuana", but as with any drugs, there are trade-offs.
in the military during the 1970s i was stationed in a country where drugs weren't accessible, so people coming there from the states were subject to cold turkey quitting.
we could tell who suddenly stopped smoking reefer because they'd be standing someplace, staring at their locker, a desk, etc. what happened is in ten feet they forgot what they were going to get/do.
eventually w/o any more pot their brain rewired so they weren't airheads anymore, but we were teens/early 20s. imagine what happens to someone smoking dope over decades.
You don't need science or a study. Just look at some of the 1960's pot smokers today and see the results. You could have saved millions of $$
If you really believe that weed is worse for you than alcohol, you REALLY need to research a bit more about alcohol!
I don't smoke weed, but check out the history of why it was made illegal. Politics, plain and simple. Alcohol is the single most destructive drug in the world. It causes damage to every major organ in the body, and you want to talk about changing decision making abilities?
Who have spent more time physically fighting with and or cleaning up the wreckage of: drunks or stoners?
Now we Know what is causing 9.5
To act like he does
Bullshit! You can't tell me taking a bite out of my Gummy bear at night is worse than drinking a fifth of vodka.
Is marijuana worse than say, a half dozen martinis?
4/17/2014 12:32:00 AM
Maybe not, but at this point it illegal.
Also too many martinis have cause many fatal traffic accidents,domestics and other problems.
Now you want to add marijuana to add more problems.
Wait until you see medical marijuana ( and in states where general use if lawful) add in magazines and on TV. maybe even on public transportation. Now, that will be fun. And, you know it is coming.
>>>>> Smoking marijuana even just a few times a week may change your brain .... significant structural changes in key regions of the brain affecting emotion and decision-making ..... “These are brain regions you don’t want to mess with — period,” said Dr. Hans Breiter ~~~ “Even casual use of marijuana can change the brain circuits that change the way you feel and change the way you make decisions, “ said Dr. T. Celeste Napier, <<<<<
I didn't need any study for this. Hell, anyone who made it through the 60's knows this from just being around the fucking Potheads.
But I'm glad its now a scientific fact. And something everyone can reference back to when trying to describe ijit libtards and why they 'feel', it's because they can't think.
It also explains why the Pothead In Chief is a vacillating nimrod, and can't make a goddamn decision about anything. His brain is fried! [Hey, he can be removed from office per Section 4 of the 25th Amendment. :-)]
No... It won't kill you from an overdose. it will kill you from emphysema and lung cancer.
One beer or one glass of whine is conclusively proven to be good for you. the abuse of alcohol is what kills you and in most cases that is from prolonged use. One drink a day is not abuse.
JUST ONE marijuana cigarrette is every bit as damaging to your lungs and heart as one tobacco cigarrette. Just one. Stop comparing alcohol to weed. both abused are really bad for you. marijuana smoked....ALWAYS BAD FOR YOU!
To the unpublished stoned dissenter:
you must have been high writing your comment because you saw things that weren't there and countered arguments we never made.
we didn't say this was the only legit study - but those who argue the science is settled are often wrong/mistaken/deliberately espousing a certain point of view. climate change is not settled, neither are the studies on weed. to claim that "weed is harmless" is asinine. to claim it's a killer is silly. further study is necessary to determine the full effects, but it can be pretty much assumed that the effects on heavy users, especially during formative years, bears closer scrutiny.
We don't eat the crap at Dunkin and the gangstas we arrest have an encyclopedia full of problems, some of which may or may not be exacerbated by weed use by mom while in utero, in their presence throughout the tender years and by themselves once they figure out which end to light.
So enjoy your intoxicating smoke as an adult who can make informed decisions, we don't really care. but try to actually read the argument we made and not the one Cheech or Chong told you was on the screen while you were sipping the bong water.
Oh, and when you dare us to publish or not publish or "surprise" you, it gets deleted out of hand - see Rule #2 on the right.
"That's why Jamaica is so cool, everybody is chillin."
4/17/2014 06:58:00 AM
"JAMAICA - Exercise a high degree of caution.
"There is no nationwide advisory in effect for Jamaica. However, you should exercise a high degree of caution due to the high level of violent crime."
--Government Of Canada
http://travel.gc.ca/destinations/jamaica
Provided this study isn't some modern form of "Refer Madness", how does this make pot worse than a wide variety of substances people ingest, smoke, and inject that are legal? This includes FDA approved drugs that seem to be a constant in people who commit mass shootings but make the right people too much money to examine.
And there is the reason pot is illegal. It's just too damn easy and cheap for people and thus will not keep the money flowing to the right interests. Which includes industrial hemp being illegal.
The war on some drugs is waste of resources that destroys lives and neighborhoods and has probably resulted in more people destroying their lives with drug use than fewer.
"we could tell who suddenly stopped smoking reefer because ... in ten feet they forgot what they were going to get/do."
So you're saying pot cures the problem of entering a room and forgetting why you went in there? :)
2,3,4 fingers of Jack to settle down every night or morning after work in the hood ain't the best either. A little weed might help, but I can't partake due to medical issues.
I'll stick with the Jack, right or wrong.
Be Safe Officers.
All I know is that all throughout undergrad, 3 masters degrees, and a plethora of post-graduate certificates I smoked a metric trainload of pot. If that stuff was bad for you - I'd be dead.
But I'm not. I'm married, have a house, two cars, two kids, run several of my own businesses (and I've had others before that), and even worked for some very large corporations...
I know LOTS of guys like me. These studies are all BS... We've been lied to for more than 40 years...
Forest in the trees SSC, clearly you never mentioned Nancy Reagan or anything about stupid health fads. What I was alluding to is that there's a lot of science out there that's politically and economically motivated to prove some asshole's point of view, we both agree on this, yay us, we have brains in our heads.
I agree that the effects of marijuana should be studied. I personally think there needs to be a lot more objective, non-partisan science done on anything we put in our bodies, but for you to maintain that outlawing weed and allowing alcohol and cigarettes is ludicrous. The fact that you would counter that by "pointing people to this study" which I'd guess you haven't read bc it's paywalled (at least the links I found in my 5 second Google search were), with the intention of dissuading them from being pro-marijuana legalisation is not the same sentiment you just expressed in your comment.
You guys really need to cut it out with the petty cheap shots and acting like you know everything. I know you're Chicago cops, but jeez take easy. It keeps you from reaching a broader audience and actually affecting change, isn't that why you write this blog?
Read back issues of Rolling Stone and you will see the "weed " of today has much higher THC content than the "weed" of the 70's or eighties. And the sellers are adding other chemicals to it. Growers are looking at making marijuana more powerful. You can't compare it to what it used to be, the current stuff is bad news.
Marijuana has no ill effects, other than the famous, irresistible urge to tell everyone, over and over again, that "Marijuana has no ill effects!"
The same flakey hipsters who are obsessed with organic food, will buy weed from a stranger on the street. Weed grown who knows where. Contaminated with God knows what. Then rave about how healthy their habit is.
Come on it's not like someone cut off thier dick and jumped off a balcony from eating a pot cookie. Oops!
The key words are "in young adults." Their brains are still developing. In those over 18, this doesn't apply. The legalization aspect doesn't come into play, because none of the states' laws allow under-age toking. This is not news; it's new research that backs up older findings.
Give me 8 mos more and I'll give you my personal study.
After 30 years of this shit theres parts of my brain I never use anyways so who gives a shit?
...wait a minute here!
ABC News had a report on this
Marijuana Research in America
I know a hipster. "Wide Hips" Wiilliamson.
She would give you the ride of your live.
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