New cannabis study leaves experts ‘surprised’ with effect it has on adults' brains
Britt Jones
Featured Image Credit: Getty Stock Images
Cannabis has long been believed to be the drug of choice for young people, but a new study revealed a reason why older people might see a benefit.
Known as the drug that opens up doors for experimentation in teenagers, weed is actually climbing the ranks to become somewhat of a choice for older age groups, too.
The Center for Drug Use and HIV/HCV Research (CDUHR) at the NYU School of Global Public Health found that there have been pronounced increases in use by older adults, particularly in those who are ‘college-educated, married, female, and have higher incomes’.
The findings were published in JAMA Internal Medicine, and also show that people are using it more and more.
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“If we look even further back to 2006 and 2007, less than one percent of older adults used cannabis in the past year. Now, we’re seeing that seven percent have used it in the past month alone,” said Benjamin Han, an affiliated researcher with CDUHR.
While the impact on cognitive ability and the brain has usually been zeroed in on adolescents, now, scientists are finding out just what it does for older people.
Apparently, it can provide a benefit to some.
“More older adults are using cannabis. It’s more widely available and is being used for different reasons than in younger folks — such as for sleep and chronic pain,” Dr Anika Guha, a clinical psychologist at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, said in a statement.
“Plus, people are living longer. We have to ask, ‘What are the long-term effects of cannabis use as we continue to age?’”
After looking into the data of 26,362 adults ages 40 to 77 in the UK, they found that the hippocampus in the brain, which is where memory takes place, responded positively to the cannabinoid.
After patients detailed their existing cannabis use, and went for MRI scans to assess their brain structure and participated in cognitive tests, the researchers looked into the brain regions that were full of the cannabinoid receptor called CB1.
They realized those who were ingesting cannabis in some form, would perform better on cognitive tests.
“I was a little surprised that every cognitive measure that demonstrated a significant effect showed better performance among cannabis users,” Guha said. “It goes against your default assumptions because I think a lot of research out there has shown cannabis is associated with worse cognitive function, at least acutely.”
However, for best results, she says that ‘moderation is best’ as moderate users had larger brain volumes and performed better in the cognitive tests, though it is individual-dependent.