The Psychological Effects of High-Potency THC Products

According to Psychology Today, high-potency THC products (like concentrates and isolates) are more likely to cause dependency, cognitive impairments, and adverse effects, including anxiety, paranoia, and psychosis, especially in vulnerable populations (like teens and young adults) or heavy users.  Studies have explored the relationship between higher THC doses and health outcomes, including cannabis use disorder (CUD), cardiovascular issues, psychosis, depression, suicide, violence, and impaired driving.  Regular use of high-potency cannabis is associated with an increased likelihood of dependence, craving, and withdrawal symptoms.  The New York Times article covers how cannabis companies are focusing on producing powerful and cheap marijuana.  And they are enticing customers with unproven health claims, while largely escaping rigorous oversight.  In a $32 billion industry that has been volatile — only about a quarter of businesses turned a profit last year, one survey found — companies say they also face pressure to do whatever they can to survive.  Prices have dropped amid an oversupply and a persistent rivalry with the illegal cannabis trade.  Nearly 18 million Americans now report using marijuana daily or near daily — more than the number drinking alcohol that often — according to a national survey on drug use.  A growing number are enduring addiction, psychosis and other harms, a Times investigation last year found.  More growers have embraced breeding techniques to increase the potency of the marijuana smoked in joints, blunts and bongs, pushing the THC levels to as much as 30 percent.  And many businesses sell concentrates, some promoting nearly 100 percent THC, in the form of waxes and liquids.  None of the cannabis available in medical or recreational dispensaries is F.D.A.-approved.  Only four cannabis-related prescription drugs have been cleared, one for epilepsy and three for chemotherapy-induced nausea.  Some consumers have sued cannabis companies, saying they were misled by unproven wellness claims or not informed about potential risks.  “The industry has been very effective at transmitting this idea of cannabis as a safe, natural wellness product,” said Dr. Lynn Silver, a pediatrician and senior adviser at the Public Health Institute, who has reported to the state on the effects of high-potency products. “There’s little awareness of just how much the product has actually changed, of how industrialized and increasingly hazardous it’s become.”

Here are the links: Inside the $32 Billion Industry Transforming Marijuana - The New York Times and The Many Risks of Cannabis and High-Dose THC | Psychology Today