Kaiser Health News (5/7, Hilzenrath) reports, “Marijuana and other products containing THC, the plant’s main psychoactive ingredient, have grown more potent and more dangerous as legalization has made them more widely available,” with some products currently having “more than 90% THC.” These higher concentrations of THC “pose greater hazards, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse,” which said on its website that “the risks of physical dependence and addiction increase with exposure to high concentrations of THC, and higher doses of THC are more likely to produce anxiety, agitation, paranoia, and psychosis.” Psychiatrist Smita Das, MD, “chair of an American Psychiatric Association council on addiction,” said that “cannabis use disorder ‘can be devastating.’” Dr. “Das said she has seen lives upended by cannabis – very successful people who have lost families and jobs.”
Related Links:
— “Legal pot is more potent than ever. And it’s still largely unregulated, putting consumers at risk. “David Hilzenrath, KFF Health News, May 7, 2023