Tag Archives: mental health

Cannabis during pregnancy may cause mental health issues in children

Mental health is the buzzword of today. Children whose mothers used cannabis during pregnancy may develop attention and behavioral problems around ages 11 and 12. The findings come from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study, also called the ABCD Study.  Scientists at Washington University analyzed data and published their findings in JAMA Pediatrics last month.

Considering that prenatal cannabis use increased from 3 % to 7 % between 2002 and 2017, the warnings against pot use for pregnant women need to get stronger.  (The first two states voted to legalize pot in 2012, and now that number stands at 19 states.)  While mental health problems in youth are growing, it’s shocking that states follow policies that increase mental health risks. Continue reading Cannabis during pregnancy may cause mental health issues in children

Parents Group Warns Marijuana Legalization is Unhealthy for Families and Communities

 

Virginia Legislators Need to Evaluate Public Health Outcomes in Pot Legal States says PopPot

Merrifield, VA– February 4, 2021—[EIN Press Wire]Virginia’s state legislature is fast-tracking a bill to legalize marijuana. Parents Opposed to Pot (PopPot), a Virginia-based educational nonprofit, calls on the legislature to slow down and consider the fact that this is an addictive drug that can cause severe mental illness.

“The governor claims his top priority is public health, and yet the only legislative committee not to review the pending marijuana commercialization law is the Health committee,” explains Aubree Adams, Assistant Director of PopPot. “Our website, poppot.org, contains dozens of stories of marijuana addiction, psychosis, and death, written by parents, former and current users of marijuana.”

Continue reading Parents Group Warns Marijuana Legalization is Unhealthy for Families and Communities

My Daughter Suffered Paranoia and Psychosis from “Medical” Marijuana

My daughter is in her thirties.  A friend who was a recovering drug addict introduced her to marijuana. She started experimenting with pot after high school. I didn’t know about it at the time, only found out years later. She said it brought up memories and was sort of traumatic for her.

She started seeing a therapist.  And, eventually, she was recommended a medical marijuana card. I still don’t know the diagnosis. She was smoking marijuana occasionally before that, but once she got the card she started smoking large amounts of pot. She was telling me strange things, things that didn’t make sense. I thought ‘this is really odd.’ The next time we visited she was very secretive. She was dressed nicely and seemed to be taking care of herself, as normal. But it was our conversation that was unnerving.  She took me outside to the woods nearby to speak, because she suspected there were hidden cameras all over her home. Continue reading My Daughter Suffered Paranoia and Psychosis from “Medical” Marijuana

Government setting wrong example on pot

The following article comes from the “Your Views” section of The Daily Herald, a Chicagoland newspaper, on January 7, 2020.

What was Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton thinking when she purchased recreational marijuana in Chicago on the first day of its legal sales in Illinois? Does she not understand that as a public official, she is setting a reckless and foolish example, especially for children and teens?

Illinois policymakers are sending a dangerous message to our young people. First, we called it “medicinal.” Now, we call it “recreational.” Gone are the days of “this is your brain on drugs.” Instead, elected officials like Stratton are celebrating drug use by welcoming the marijuana industry to communities throughout the state.

Their feckless example will mislead citizens into a diminished understanding of the dangers of drug use until it affects them personally. As the perception of risk plummets, drug use (and addictions) will climb.

Not only have lawmakers failed to do their due diligence before passing this marijuana law, but they have also failed to heed the compelling research that indicates how regular use of marijuana affects young people, including an increased risk of psychiatric illnesses and loss of IQ points.

Parents, grandparents, teachers, and religious leaders would do well to counter Stratton’s irresponsible example by returning to the sensible message, “just say no to drugs.”

David Smith, Executive Director, Illinois Family Institute