Marijuana in the Womb
Support for marijuana legalization seems to be rapidly outpacing opposition. Now they have another positive to add to the list – apparently, babies who are exposed to marijuana in the womb have better eyesight by the time they are four.
Researchers from the University of Waterloo, Auckland and Brown University, conducted a pretty unusual study to come up with this result.
They examined how those within the control group tracked objects in their line of vision and then compared their results to a group of tots who were completely clean.
While at the same time they tested the effects of alcohol, methamphetamine, and nicotine.
All of which either demonstrated an adverse effect (alcohol) or no effect at all (methamphetamine and nicotine) on the sample’s vision.
Professor Ben Thompson who helped conduct the study said:
“We were surprised with this initial finding. It shows that marijuana and alcohol can have quite an impact on a fundamental aspect of the visual processing happening in our brains. But despite the apparently beneficial impact of marijuana on the development of the brain’s visual system, other research shows its use can actually impair the brain development of unborn children.”
Relatively few human studies have been carried out into the effects of smoking cannabis during pregnancy – although rat studies have suggested the drug can cause brain damage.
Although your kid may grow up with eagle vision, they may also have a pretty foggy mind.
So I’d steer clear of lighting up while you are pregnant just to be one the safe side, it’s not advisable.
America’s National Institute on Drug Abuse says that more research is needed to separate marijuana use from other factors, but says:
“Human studies have shown that some babies born to women who used marijuana during their pregnancies respond differently to visual stimuli, tremble more, and have a high-pitched cry, which could indicate problems with neurological development.”
Of course, we wouldn’t want our kids to grow up to become addicts but if such studies pave the way for legalization, then so be it. It appears that partial legalization is an inevitability.
