I don’t trust this “it’s getting stronger” claim.
Before it was “it’s much stronger than it was before”
What are they going to say next?
The discontinuation hypoothesis is not proven and it doesn’t take in to account the numbers of people smoking it has increased overall, whether they have experienced paranoia/psychosis or not.
If more people have smoked it and the level of schizophrenia still remains the same then if cannabis actually causes schizophrenia it would increase none the less. It hasn’t! Whether they stop smoking it from bad experiences or not , so much for the discontinuation theory.
It is more likely a genetic trait and the fact that a lot of people with sz have experienced adverse childhood experiences (whether they realise it or not) driving them to escape with drugs in adolescence and were going to develop sz anyway from these past traumas and epigenetic changes, possibly hastened by taking drugs. That is my two cents anyway…
In the UK, tests were made on samples collected or seized. THC levels were recorded as considerably higher with little or no CBD found. In Britain, where it is homegrown growers want extreme levels of thc to prove that it has a pronounced effect on the customer. It is not like legal states in the USA where you can buy all types of grades and strengths of cannabis, as it is illegal. There is little choice from the dealer, and little education for users to know of the benefits of cbd in their drug of choice.
The general user is getting a strong hit form high thc cannabis, and the user definitely feels it. At at least ÂŁ25 for 3.5 grams, the user wants to know they are definitely going to feel it, and they do. That is all there is on the street these days, what with Morrocco clamping down on hashish supplies lately which is considerably safer with 1:1 ratio of cbd and thc.
I can agree with that.
I did smoke for a long time and there were certain people that have stated that today’s pot is pretty potent and heavy compared to the stuff they had in the 70’s.
@firemonkey to answer your question, pot affects people differently. Once person may take a hit and love it, while another person may take a hit and go straight to the hospital. It’s different for everybody.
I smoked for a long time and I was fine. Everyday.
I was one of those dummies who knew it affected me adversely but I continued to use. Dumb me.
I do wonder.Studies show people who use cannabis are 5X more likely to develop sz, but is it chicken or egg? Are people with tendencies towards sz more likely to use cannabis or is cannabis causing sz?
i’m on the fence… yet again. i went to the gym and did chores- two feats not seen in at least a month. all this while pruning the shrub.
Great point firemonkey. Correlation does NOT equal causation in terms of the connection between cannabis and developing psychotic disorders. It is more likely an issue of personal genetic vulnerability, and at most may be that cannabis does trigger negative effects amongst certain individuals with already present internal vulnerabilities
“The best study to confirm the hypothesis would be a long-term study mapping cannabis experiences to schizophrenia risk”
I’m always skeptical of people saying longitudinal studies are “the best” option. They seem to be forgetting that longitudinal studies are still just correlational studies.
The best study to confirm this would be long-term intervention and prevention studies where you treat, or preferably try to prevent, cannabis use and see if it affects the rate of sz in your sample.
Edit: The author is a doctor. Of course he is. They love their correlations. Unfortunately, they’re usually not very good with methodology.
I do think it’s telling that s rates have not shot up. However has the age of onset lessened and severity increased of those who do develop schizophrenia ?
Also the issue of cannabis causes schizophrenia vs people with sz tendencies are more likely to smoke cannabis is pertinent.
Doesn’t it just confirm that 1% is susceptible and that has remained pretty consistent. If your prone to schizophrenia your getting it regardless! That is all I’d read into it! Nothing changed really for most of us!
I don’t really buy the discontinuation hypothesis either. It seems like a last-ditch effort. We already know people with increased genetic risk for sz are more likely to smoke weed than others, and we know the discontinuation hypothesis could never be the full answer - if it causes sz, the prevalence of sz should go up regardless.
Cbd could help.
in my case the weed just has too much thc and barely any cbd now which makes it more psychoactive when i was off meds if i smoked what was considered good weed it would be horrible because my psychosis would get like 10 times worse, if i smoked the cheap brown lookin weed that would actually be more enjoyable because it has more cbd and the thc is about equal to the cbd
Another possibility to consider is there is a threshold level of THC exposure that was already being met by regular pot.
That’s a good point, especially considering the population is rising at a dramatic rate.
Also how many people are smoking pot? Is it the same or vary over time? Likely it varies but who can do it now are imo the “cool” kids.
But I like what @anon9798425 said. If the rates are not going up with increasing THC in cannabis then the same should be said if they prevent cannabis use all together, to provide more evidence that it doesn’t cause sz.