The C.A.M. Report
Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Fair, Balanced, and to the Point
  • About this web log

    This blog ran from 2006 to 2016 and was intended as an objective and dispassionate source of information on the latest CAM research. Since my background is in pharmacy and allopathic medicine, I view all CAM as advancing through the development pipeline to eventually become integrated into mainstream medical practice. Some will succeed while others fail. But all are treated fairly here.

  • About the author

    John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.

  • Common sense considerations

    The material on this weblog is for informational purposes. It is not medical advice or counsel. Be smart, consult your health professional before using CAM.

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  • Recent Comments

    Cannabis and psychosis in adolescence

    In the largest unselected, population-based study on this topic to date, researchers from Finland observed “Cannabis use is associated with prodromal symptoms of psychosis in adolescence.”

    First, the details.

    • In 6330 adolescents, marijuana use and prodromal symptoms of psychosis were recorded at age 15–16 years.
    • Examples of prodromal symptoms
      • Feeling like something strange or inexplicable was taking place
      • Suspecting they were being influenced or followed
      • Difficulty in controlling the speed of thoughts

    And, the results.

    • Those who tried cannabis (about 6% of the total) were more likely to show 3 or more prodromal symptoms even after controlling for confounders including previous behavioral symptoms.
    • More smoking was associated with more symptoms.

    The bottom line?
    Teenage cannabis users are more likely to suffer psychotic symptoms that raise the risk of full-blown mental illness in later life.

    6/9/08 21:28 JR

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