Dangerous Marijuana Side Effects Revealed

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(RightWing.org) – The federal government criminalized marijuana possession with the passage of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970, otherwise known as the Controlled Substance Act (HR 18583). Since then, several states have legalized the medical and recreational use of the Schedule I substance. However, a recent study revealed a dangerous side-effect associated with marijuana use, regardless of the reason for ingesting or smoking it.

On July 22, JAMA Internal Medicine, a monthly peer-reviewed publication from the American Medical Association, released a study on the effects of prenatal cannabis use on pregnancy outcomes. Researchers monitored 316,722 pregnancies as part of this cohort study.

For those unfamiliar with the term, a cohort study involves observational research wherein a group of people, nearly 317K in this instance, are followed for a varying time interval to observe the medical outcomes associated with a particular exposure or characteristic — like prenatal marijuana use.

Researchers determined that the use of marijuana by pregnant women “was associated with increased risk” for several potentially dangerous medical afflictions. The study listed the increased risk of developing the following five conditions.

Gestational diabetes: a form of disease developed during pregnancy that can affect the health of both the mother and baby.

Placental abruption: a complication where the placenta detaches from the uterus wall before delivery, presenting a life-threatening risk to the mother and the child.
Improper weight gain levels: mothers gaining either significantly lower or higher weight than recommended, which can impact maternal and fetal health.

Preeclampsia: a condition marked by high blood pressure and damage to organ systems like the kidneys in mothers.

Gestational hypertension: the development of high blood pressure in pregnant women after 20 weeks of gestation without any symptoms of preeclampsia or the presence of protein in the mother’s urine.

The study concluded that continued research was necessary to “understand” whether certain aspects of marijuana use by pregnant women impacted women’s risk levels, like the timing, mode of use, and dosage of that substance.