The
article is about a study that was done to see if the smoking of Marijuana had
any effects on the brain perfusion and cognition. The study consisted of 12
recreational users in a double-blinded, placebo-controlled study. In the study
scientist tested the user’s brain before and after they smoked the marijuana
and placebo cigarettes. When the testers smoked marijuana the scientist found
that the result was intoxication but not on the level that it significantly changed the
person’s behavioral performance. However the person's heart rate and blood
pressure did increase greatly. When testers were told to smoke the
placebo-cigarette, they did not have the same effects. To the testers who
smoked the marijuana, scientist also found an increase in regional cerebral blood
flow in the frontal lobes, insular, temporal poles, anterior cingulate and the
cerebellum. The study also found that there was no big change in
the regional cerebral blood flow or in the basal ganglia or hippocampus; these
regions have high density of cannabinoid receptors. The reason that this study
was done was because marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug in the
United States for many years and because of this scientist wanted to know what
effects it has on the human body as fall as the human brain and blood flow.
Over all, although the study did not show significant changes in the brain
which would severely alter the brain state, scientist did find that smoking
marijuana does decrease regional cerebral blood flow in sensory cortices and in
attention-related brain regions. This means that although there is no sever
damage to the brain, smoking marijuana can alter the brain in the way that it
can slow down regions of the brain for a period of time.
Article:
http://www.nature.com/npp/journal/v26/n6/full/1395868a.html
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