Evidence
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Is music actually better when you’re high?
Rationale: The researchers wanted to explore how THC and CBD influence the brain’s response to music. Listening to music is a common rewarding activity for cannabis consumers; however, research shows…
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How are teenage cannabis use and adult depression connected?
Rationale: Cannabis affects mood and mental health, with effects building up over time. Adolescents are particularly vulnerable to these harms, yet the relationship between cannabis use, depression, and anxiety has…
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Exploring the ties between adolescent cannabis use and adult mental health
Rationale: The current body of evidence relates early cannabis use to psychiatric disorders such as anxiety, depression, and suicidality later in life. To examine this correlation further, researchers looked over…
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Is weed a gateway drug? Does smoking weed lead to other drug use?
Rationale: Gateway Hypothesis (or gateway drug effect) is a theory that assumes someone who uses a “softer” drug like cannabis increases their likelihood of using more dangerous drugs. (Miller &…
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Can smoking weed lead to a stroke?
Rationale: There has been a 70% rise in the risk of having a stroke for all ages in the last 30 years. A large portion of the increase is thought…
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Lasting impacts of cannabis use among youth
Rationale: There is rising concern, especially for young users of cannabis, that the drug may impair neurocognition. Neurocognition includes problem solving, abstract reasoning, language production and interpretation, and attention, which…
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Association between cannabis use and maternal outcomes
Rationale: In 2016, about 7% of US women reported using cannabis during pregnancy, and since widespread legalization, odds are this percentage has increased. The chemicals in cannabis readily cross the…
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High-intensity exercise and cannabis cravings
Rationale: Cannabis is widely used, with about 10–30% of regular users develop cannabis use disorder (CUD), a condition associated with problems involving memory, mood, anxiety, and motivation. Research has also…
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Doctor-recommended cannabis use in the era of legalization
Rationale: 40 U.S. states have made cannabis medically legal, in 24 of which it is recreationally legal. California was one of the first states to do both. Scientists wanted to…
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Are there medications to help stop smoking weed?
Rationale: Cannabis dependence is a growing public health concern as there is currently no effective pharmacotherapy. There are some psychotherapies available, but many participants do not achieve abstinence. Dronabinol is…