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 Marijuana and Pregnancy
Pregnancy. Marijuana. Bad.
Ok, here's some details. Getting pregnant is going to be harder in the
first place. Usually, male partners abuse the same substances that
their female counterparts do. In men, marijuana decreases
testosterone, sperm count, and potency. Needless to say, not a
winning combination for conception. Women who smoke marijuana
have increased risk of abnormalities in ovulation and therefore more
infertility. This risk is enhanced when the use is within one year before
attempting conception. This risk did not change with frequency or
length of use. So, that means that even occasional use of small
amounts of marijuana can decrease women's fertility.
But many women overcome those hurdles. Then, they go on to have
higher rates of spontaneous abortion, pregnancy complications, and
problems with labor and delivery. Birth defects are associated with
marijuana use. Fathers' use lead to higher rates of certain heart
abnormalities. Mothers' use is associated with mutant
lymphocytes--deranged immune cell factors--which could later lead to
higher rates of childhood cancers.
But wait--there's more. Their newborns can experience mild
withdrawal and some nervous system effects. And the toxic effects of
pre-natal marijuana exposure is the gift that keeps on giving. Effects
are often not readily apparent in newborns. Still, psychologists who
have studied these babies have found neurological delays. Likewise,
few negative effects are apparent between the ages of 1 and 3. But a
woman shouldn't be fooled if she has heard of a study where the very
young kids show no ill effects. Pre-natal marijuana exposure effects
what are called "higher cognitive functions" which don't express
themselves until later. At four years old, decreases in verbal ability
and memory can be found in those kid exposed to pre-natal
marijuana use. At ages 5 and 6, more problems with attention span
are found. Needless to say, none of this sets the kid up for a great
experience in grade school. At ages 9-12, the same problems
persist and compound. Pre-natally exposed to marijuana kids have
lower impulse control, don't do as well on certain types of analysis
and reasoning tasks, and have lower reading and language skills.
So best advice--quit. Ideally, a woman and her partner should quit
long before they try for conception. Should a woman find herself
pregnant while still using, she should seek out a treatment program
immediately. Quitting any substance abused is difficult, but
pregnancy is the strongest motivator for women. There are treatment
programs geared towards women, and some even geared towards
pregnant women.
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