Skunk Alert: Marijuana Can Cause Permanent Brain Damage

Part 8 of a 9 part series

The damage is caused by physically altering the brain before it reaches full maturity at or about age 25. Marijuana reduces the amount of white and grey matter by as much as 80%, and shrinks the hippocampus, the learning, cognition and memory center of the brain causing a loss of 6 to 8 points of IQ by age 38, according to the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA). The damage is age and dose related. The younger one starts and the more they use the greater the toxic effect on the brain. Quitting later doesn’t reverse the damage. Adolescent marijuana use diminishes academic achievement, leads to more dropouts, less life satisfaction and fewer opportunities for higher paying jobs. Parents should be aware that there is a huge difference between an adolescent and a mature brain. Brain damage during adolescence can have life-long adverse consequences.

Skunk is the name for today’s high potency marijuana. 

See the previous post in the series: Marijuana is NOT Medicine. See the next post in the series: Marijuana is NOT Safer than Alcohol