As states have begun to legalize marijuana, its use has been more openly discussed. While the effects of other commonly used drugs, such as alcohol, have been studied extensively, the effects of marijuana – especially on developing babies during pregnancy – have been much less studied and less widely publicized. This relative silence from the scientific community has affected the public’s opinion on the safety of marijuana: 70 percent of U.S. women think there is “slight or no risk of harm” to the baby from using marijuana during pregnancy. Expectant mothers may use marijuana rather than prescription drugs during pregnancy to relieve pain because they feel “natural” or home remedies are a safer option than prescription drugs. However, just because something is “natural” doesn’t mean it is any safer or a better alternative to well-studied prescription drugs. This seems to be the case for marijuana. Given that marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug during pregnancy, understanding its risks and impacts on the developing fetus is important.
Three large-scale longitudinal studies tracked how maternal cannabis use affected their child’s development, and they have had surprisingly consistent results. The Ottawa Prenatal Prospective Study surveyed 700 pregnant women who used marijuana in 1978 and has followed about 200 of those children into adulthood. The U.S.-based Maternal Health Practices and Child Development Study has studied 580 children of marijuana users from pregnancy through age 14. The Generation R study is tracking almost 8,000 children in the Netherlands.
Children of marijuana users were more impulsive and hyperactive, and exhibited behavioral issues, lower IQ scores, and memory problems when compared to children of non-users. These mental health problems persisted through their teenage years, where they were significantly more likely to have attention problems and depression. Marijuana-exposed children were also almost twice as likely to display delinquent behavior, such as drug use, by the age of 14 and were more than twice as likely to regularly use marijuana and tobacco as adults. The very consistent results between mice and human studies (summarized in the infographic from The Scientist below) highlights an increasing understanding of the impacts of marijuana use on development.
It’s important to note that some behavioral outcomes may not be completely related to fetal marijuana exposure. Children of marijuana users may have grown up in a different social environment with more lax views on drugs, contributing to their increased drug use.
As marijuana continues to be legalized, we should expect to see more studies on its health effects and safety.
Managing Correspondent: Chelsea Weidman Burke
Press Article: The Scientist
Original Journal Articles: The Ottawa Prenatal Prospective Study
The Maternal Health Practices and Child Development Study
Image Credit: Cleveland Public Library
I am 31 years old woman born from parents who never ever tried any kind of drugs, alcohol or nicotine in their whole life. Not even any relative family members who does that were around me and my brother. I never smoked with till I became 23 years old. Both me and my brother have IQ higher than 130 and studied in best universities but these did not help our mental health. We both suffered from being anxious, depressed, having social skills problems, body balance etc. Just to remind that currently I am pregnant and the doctors prescribed many medicines for my anxiety and extreme vomit all pregnancy. Those pills have been proven that are harmful for fetus but are still prescribed for me. So are these researches reliable? As a child of healthy parents I am mentally sick, and who will guarantee my child’s health for long term regarded to the all pills I took during pregnancy?! I can understand women who choose to trust weed more than doctors’ prescription to have their health problems fixed.
I am a paediatrician. My wife suffers sever PTSD, as a veteran , and vaporises medical marijuana once or twice a day. She continued to do so during both pregnancies, which occurred in her early 40s.
Our teenage daughters both attend a private high school for gifted children. Neither use marijuana, but both know that their mother uses it medicinally and see how it benefits her.
I don’t use marijuana, I never have. As a medical professional, I understand the critical nature of research. Research done around this topic has been poor, to say the least. Mainly, strength of thc, amounts and method of consumption, and any relevant follow up lack in published literature.
I don’t recommend marijuana use as a doctor. However, I am fortunate my wife’s doctor did.
Otherwise, she would not be living the happy, fulfilled life we have been blessed by God to build together.
Thank you for sharing this!
Very informative.
I wish they would be more transparent about the methods of the research for these studies. Collecting valid data on two very sensitive populations 1) pregnant women and 2) drug use combined is going to be quite problematic. Relying heavily on self -reporting, which is inherently bias and then add the social stigma around cannabis use and double that for using during pregnancy. I can’t imagine that the data collected from these studies is as valid as the claims they leap to make. Was there consistency with the method of delivery? (I.e. differences between smoking or ingesting cannabis?) was there consistency in dosing or frequency of us? Was there any control or extrapolation for those that also used other illicit drugs in addition to Cannabis? We know that alcohol and opioid use during pregnancy is dangerous for both mother and fetus, however opioids are routinely used as anesthetic during labor. I would be interested to see the results for a study that recruits otherwise healthy, non-users to occasional cannabis users, who utilize a specific dose and ratio of CBD and THC that is appropriate for the condition it is meant to treat. For example, Hyperemesis Gravidum can be very dangerous and life threatening, and we don’t currently have a great way to treat it. If there’s a chance that cannabis could be an effective treatment with minimal risk and side effects compared to current protocols, I think that’s worth exploring. Same for labor pain – we already use aggressive, risky, and side effect laden interventions during labor. Yet we don’t want to explore the use of Cannabis as a possible alternative? Why is that? In order to make informed decisions, we need to have good data. Before we can even begin to say one way or another on Cannabis use for perinatal conditions, we need better data. And the only way we are going to be able to do that is to find a way to improve research design and methods on this topic. We have to be transparent and honest about the very significant limitations that have been put on these studies by legal, sociological, and ethical constraints.
good article..gathered lot of information about cannabis
Harvard.edu
Makes you question the credibility of Harvard if their “research” is just stupid surveys done on random people without proper background documentation.
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I like the theme of this blog. Where can I download it?
Hello, if the next father smoked for 1 year before conception canabis and different THC substances, the mother doesnt smoke at all ,which are the risks for baby? It can appear brain problems or something?
This study does seem slightly vague, but I can tell you in my experiences with my son and his older brother who is not mine. The mother smoked while both kids were in the womb as well as smoke around them as infants and toddlers, sometimes in enclosed areas. From what I have seen while in the womb didn’t seem to be such a big issue but once out of the womb she continued to smoke around them and that definitely had an impact on certain areas of their lives, including but not limited to behavioral problems, learning issues, and add/adhd. I don’t care who you are but you should definitely not expose your children to the side effects of Marijuana it is a psychosomatic drug that does have effects on the brain especially developing brains in young children. My sons brother has an extremely hard time with sleep, learning, memory and behaviors and I do believe it is due to this exact thing. No young child should have any of this forced upon them when they aren’t even old enough to make that decision for themselves. Your children should always come first before a joint or a dab. I used to smoke weed as well but but never condoned it while she was pregnant and I would get mad at her for doing it around them as infants/ toddlers and I feel my son and his brother are now paying the consequences of their mothers actions. Shortly after my son was born I stopped smoking because I wanted better for my son then how I grew up and how I watched his brother grow up. Children are pure and innocent and exposing them to this in my book is just bad parenting.
Why don’t you all answer the question.
The strains of cannabis are so different to many years ago.
Anyone that smokes weed has an altered perception to reality.
Good luck with research