Marijuana Use and Mental Health

After reviewing 10,000 studies on the effect of marijuana use, researchers, including Professor Robert Wallace, a professor of epidemiology at University of Iowa College of Public Health, concluded that the studies didn’t support many of the popular notions about the benefits of marijuana use. To the contrary, the research showed that there were some negative mental health outcomes from marijuana use, including elevating the risk of developing schizophrenia and social anxiety. Other mental health challenges associated with marijuana use included, suicidal thoughts among heavy users, and manifestation of bipolar symptoms among bipolar users who use on a daily basis.

Far from the common belief that marijuana is a wonder drug, the only conclusive health benefits identified by the research were relief of, chronic pain, nausea and vomiting after chemotherapy, and spasms from multiple sclerosis.