National Study: Teen Psychosis Possibly Linked to Pot Use

A new Canadian-based study from the Cambridge University-based journal called Psychological Medicine paints a possibly dire picture for teens who dabble with marijuana.

 The study suggests mental psychosis rates are higher for pot-smoking teens

The study presented even more evidence of the negative effects of pot on teens' brains. It is believed because their brains are still developing, frequent or regular pot use can have even more negative effects.  According to the study, via Yahoo News:

"A psychotic disorder is typically characterized by impaired perception of reality, explains paediatric psychiatrist Dr Rainer Thomasius, medical director of the German Centre for Addiction Research in Childhood and Adolescence, based at the Hamburg-Eppendorf University Clinic (UKE)."

The study has found that most teens or adolescents who are diagnosed with a psychotic disorder have a previous history of pot use.

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Dr. Thomasius says drug-related psychosis disorders can usually be cured if the patient stops using marijuana for a few weeks, but the patient is at an even higher risk of relapse is they start using again.

It is believed one of the reason for the increased mental issues in teens who use pot is because of the much more potent strains now available, according to the study:

"Prior research on the association between youth cannabis use and psychotic disorders is based heavily on 20th-century data, when the drug was much less potent than today, the Canadian researchers note, which may explain why they found the association to be considerably greater."

The study also showed teen use with today's more potent strains of pot can result in drops in IQ tests by as much as ten percent.

According to data from The Addiction Center online, 30 years ago the THC levels in pot were around 4 percent (THC is the part that makes you high), now, they're at or above 12 percent. Some strains are now approaching 20 percent.