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Cannabis Use in
Pregnancy Is Linked
to Child Anxiety,
Hyperactivity
Changes in the activity
of immune system genes
in the placenta could explain the
association, researchers speculate
As with most decision points around
pregnancy, cannabis use is a fraught
subject. Researchers can’t assess it
in randomized trials because dosing
pregnant people with the psycho
active substance is unethical. The
next best thing is studies with
enough participants who use canna
bis on their own, allowing for com
parisons with those who do not.
The findings of one such study,
published on November 15, 2021,
in the Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences USA, highlight
symptoms of increased anxiety,
hyperactivity and aggression in
children whose parents used
cannabis during pregnancy. And
its analysis of placental tissue
points to changes in the activity
of immunityrelated genes.
Today pregnant people “are being
bombarded with a lot of ads to treat
nausea and anxiety during pregnancy”
with cannabis, says the paper’s senior
author Yasmin Hurd, director of the
Addiction Institute of Mount Sinai.
“Our studies are about empowering
them with knowledge and education
so that they can make decisions.”
The results are “very striking, very
much a first,” says Daniele Piomelli,
a professor and director of the
NEWS
