DOPE smokers have a 40 per cent increased risk of developing schizophrenia, and taking it regularly drives the risk up two-fold, Australian research shows.
A new study by psychiatrists has reviewed the latest evidence of links between cannabis use and mental illness, concluding the association is "stronger and clearer than ever".
A pot smoker is 40 per cent more likely to suffer a psychotic episode than a non-smoker, according to the review of major published international research. And for people who smoke daily over long periods their risk is 200 per cent higher.
"On the world stage, Australians excel in smoking cannabis, so there are very many people who fit into this category," said lead researcher Dr Martin Cohen, a psychiatrist at the Hunter New England Mental Health Service.
"In fact we're number one in the world. "We know now more than ever that this bodes badly for our mental health."
A third of all Australians have smoked at least once in their life, with about 300,000 using daily.
Scientists have found a gene called COMT that, when faulty, is unable to break down the brain chemical dopamine. An overload of dopamine triggers psychosis and, as cannabis produces an excess of the chemical, people with this "fault" are vulnerable.(interesting)
"These teenagers are the ones we really need to worry about because their use is changing a developing brain," Dr Cohen said.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23 … 98,00.html
A new study by psychiatrists has reviewed the latest evidence of links between cannabis use and mental illness, concluding the association is "stronger and clearer than ever".
A pot smoker is 40 per cent more likely to suffer a psychotic episode than a non-smoker, according to the review of major published international research. And for people who smoke daily over long periods their risk is 200 per cent higher.
"On the world stage, Australians excel in smoking cannabis, so there are very many people who fit into this category," said lead researcher Dr Martin Cohen, a psychiatrist at the Hunter New England Mental Health Service.
"In fact we're number one in the world. "We know now more than ever that this bodes badly for our mental health."
A third of all Australians have smoked at least once in their life, with about 300,000 using daily.
Scientists have found a gene called COMT that, when faulty, is unable to break down the brain chemical dopamine. An overload of dopamine triggers psychosis and, as cannabis produces an excess of the chemical, people with this "fault" are vulnerable.(interesting)
"These teenagers are the ones we really need to worry about because their use is changing a developing brain," Dr Cohen said.
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23 … 98,00.html
