Two women smoke cannabis vape pens at a party in Los Angeles on June 8, 2019Richard Vogel / AP file
New research finds that pot use during pregnancy was connected to increased levels of stress, anxiety, aggression and hyperactivity in young children.
Women who use cannabis during their pregnancy could be putting their child at risk of developing mental health and behavioral problems early in life, a study published Monday finds.
Recent research has shown that heavy cannabis use during pregnancy can harm the fetus. Less clear, however, is the effect of the drug on child development in kids born to women who used marijuana while pregnant.
As cannabis use becomes more prevalent, especially during pregnancy, it’s important to learn what the potential risk factors are of using the drug, said Yasmin Hurd, a neuroscientist at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York and the lead author of the new study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
“It’s not that I think that cannabis is a horrible thing,” she said. “But it is a drug that we need to make sure we understand which individuals may be more vulnerable.”
Participants in the new study were part of a bigger research project called the Stress in Pregnancy study, which began in 2009 with the goal of examining how stress during pregnancy affects fetal growth and development. Pregnant women were invited to enroll in the study during their second trimester and participants were asked to participate with their children in follow-up assessments up to four years after birth.
To Read The Rest Of This Article By Kimberly Hickok on NBC News
Published: November 15, 2021
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