Thursday, April 04, 2013

The Truth about Marijuana and Pregnancy

The statement on the lack of a direct health effect on pregnancy is outdated, see the previous post.
Also, I wonder if marijuana use could have epigenetic effects that can last for several generations. Since a parents diet and exposure to various chemicals have such effects, it would not be at all surprising if marijuana does too.

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/aristotles-child/201111/the-truth-about-marijuana-and-pregnancy

November 12, 2011 by Ira J. Chasnoff, M.D.

-----
it does have an impact on fetal brain development. Long-term studies document that children whose mothers have used marijuana during pregnancy have a higher rate of executive functioning difficulties, which interfere with learning and behavior, especially as related to planning and following through with a task. Executive functioning is a vital issue, because although the children "look normal," they cannot behave and respond appropriately in the classroom or sometimes even at home. For a fuller discussion of executive functioning, see my previous blog on this topic.

-----

No comments:

Post a Comment