A new study theorises weed could be to blame for a concerning increase in psychosis diagnoses in young people.
Between 1992 and 2023, the study analysed data from 12 million people born between 1960 and 2009 in Ontario, Canada.
A shocking rise in the number of people being diagnosed with psychotic disorders has led to a theory it could be linked to the increasing use of substances like cannabis, hallucinogens and traditional uppers.
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The study, published in The Canadian Medical Association Journal, found there was a 60 percent rise in diagnoses of psychotic disorders in people aged between 14 and 20 from 1997 to 2023. Diagnoses fell in other age groups in the same period.
It went on to share that compared to those born in the late 70s, these people were twice as likely to be diagnosed with a psychotic disorder. That’s pretty scary.
Having taken a look at the cause for its rising prevalence in young people, researchers came up with a few things like neonatal health and an older paternal age. But also weed.
Dr Daniel Myran, a study author, decided to take part in the study because he was worried the legalization of cannabis could exacerbate psychotic diagnosis rates.
“I was expecting to see some increases in these younger folks, but I was quite surprised by the scale,” he told The New York Times.
“I think that there is a group of individuals who develop psychosis because of substance use, who in its absence would not have,” he explained.
“The interesting question is, how much of psychosis is caused by a modifiable substance use? Are these edge scenarios, where it’s pretty rare? Or is it actually quite frequent?”
Only 0.9 percent of people were diagnosed with a psychotic disorder over the 31 years of the study.
In 2024, 41 percent of Canadians aged between 16 and 19 reported using cannabis at least once a year, which is up five percent since it was legalized in 2018, per the Canadian Cannabis Survey.
The study looked at schizophrenia, a disorder characterized by delusions, and other diagnoses.
The largest increase was driven by ‘psychosis not otherwise specified,’ which happens when psychosis is present but there isn’t a diagnosis of schizophrenia.
While Dr Myran said there isn’t a ‘smoking gun’ which proves this increase is due to weed, he theorises substance use in teen years could lead to ‘structural changes’ in the brain.
He said: “You go to the idea that neurons that fire together wire together. Your brain is quite plastic, and if we have substance use that’s causing hallucinations, if you have ongoing activation and firing and that kind of stuff, it can change your brain.”
If you want friendly, confidential advice about drugs, you can call American Addiction Centers on (313) 209-9137 24/7, or contact them through their website.
Some people like to smoke and consume cannabis for its ‘calming’ effects, but it could be putting them at risk for more serious health conditions in the future.
Whether it’s a joint, bong, dab, edible or oil you use, cannabis could be something that harms you down the line.
Of course, you might be rolling your eyes right now because how can a naturally occurring plant cause bad health? Especially with it being in a drug that is legal for medical use in 39 of 50 states, and for recreational use in 24.
A long-term cannabis use study by the researchers at UC San Francisco was published their findings in JAMA Cardiology on May 28.
It surveyed 55 people between the ages of 18 to 50 who were ‘outwardly healthy’ and divided them into three groups.
There were those who regularly smoked cannabis, those who ate THC-containing edibles, and those who didn’t use cannabis at all.
Those who smoked typically noted that they had been indulging in the habit for a decade, while those eating edibles had been doing so for five years.
According to the press release, the participants of the study underwent testing to find out how well their blood vessels functioned and if the cells lining the blood vessels were affected by their cannabis use in September 2024.
It found that all cannabis users were at risk of heart problems later in life because of their cannabis smoking and consumption.
According to the study, using the plant in any form has been linked to a greater risk of heart disease because of the risk stemming from reduced blood vessel function.
Those included in the group were found to have ‘decreased vascular function,’ which was comparable to those who smoke tobacco products.
Shockingly, the people tested measured as having blood vessel function around half of what was compared to those who did not use cannabis at all. This put them in line for being more likely to have a heart attack, high blood pressure and other cardiovascular issues.
This isn’t the only study to find that cannabis is bad for the body, as one previous study found that it negatively affects the brain, and another explained that cannabis use is linked to dementia.
For those who took edibles, they had the exact same risk as those who smoked cannabis, said the researchers, but those who smoked it were noted to have changes in their blood serum that harmed the cells lining their blood vessels and lymphatic vessels.
« Chronic cannabis smoking and THC ingestion were associated with endothelial dysfunction [impaired functioning of the endothelial cells lining the inside of blood vessels] similar to that observed in tobacco smokers, although apparently occurring via distinct mechanisms, » the researchers wrote.
They added: « This study enhances the understanding of the potential risks to vascular health linked to cannabis use and provides more evidence that cannabis use is not benign. »
Dr. Bradley Serwer, a cardiologist and chief medical officer at VitalSolution, said he was not surprised by the results.
« We have known that the chronic use of THC-containing compounds can have negative health consequences — this study just reaffirms those prior studies, » he told Fox News Digital.
But the findings helped to understand more about what cannabis consumption can do to people.
« This study enhances the understanding of the potential risks to vascular health linked to cannabis use and provides more evidence that cannabis use is not benign, » the researchers said.
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Topics: Drugs, Health, Science
If you’ve ever thought you might be a narcissist, thankfully, you don’t have to wonder that alone as there’s a new study that suggests a specific mentality could prove that you may very well be.
Psychotherapist Kathleen Saxton previously explained how a staggering 10-15 percent of the world’s population have shown narcissistic tendencies at some point in their life.
There’s also people that have narcissistic personality disorder, which is a mental health condition in which ‘people have an unreasonably high sense of their own importance’, according to Mayo Clinic.
Health experts say that individuals with the condition seek attention, as well as lack the ability to understand or care about the feelings of others.
Away from the diagnosed condition, a new study has concluded that ‘victim mentality’ is strongly linked to that of narcissistic personality traits.
After monitoring 400 people, experts found that people who regularly perceive themselves as victims and let their nearest and dearest know about this status could well be displaying narcissistic tendencies.
While it’s obviously completely understandable to act in such way if you’ve been through genuine trauma, experts in the study note that the majority of people in their findings were doing so for validation purposes.
This is known as Tendency for Interpersonal Victimhood, experts have said.
Theresia Bedard of Lakehead University and lead author of the study said: « I had some encounters with individuals that seemed to have a ‘victim mentality,’ and had the impression that they were very self-absorbed and self-centered. Then, when I came to Lakehead for my PhD I learned about the Tendency for Interpersonal Victimhood from the second author.
« I noticed that the Tendency for Interpersonal Victimhood described these people who seemed to have a ‘victim mentality’ very well. Then, I had did one of my comprehensive exams on vulnerable and grandiose narcissism, which I realized that vulnerable narcissism seemed to have a lot of conceptual overlap with the Tendency for Interpersonal Victimhood. »
The researcher went on to say that once she’d encountered people with ‘victim mentality’, she was able to collaborate the results with her colleagues at Lakehead University.
The 400 people involved in the study, aged between 18 and 71, were provided with a series of assessments looking into their physiological behaviour.
From this, researchers were able to measure participants’ level of ‘victim mentality’, alongside other findings.
And in the end, they uncovered that the Tendency for Interpersonal Victimhood is strongly related to traits of a narcissist.
