Dangers Of Dope For The Young

Illawarra Mercury

Saturday November 4, 2006

By SARAH ALLELY

DR Nadia Solowij wants to know if adolescent dope users are smoking away their memories.

The University of Wollongong psychology lecturer has secured a substantial Federal Government grant to test her theory that those who use marijuana early in life are affected differently to adult smokers.

She said there was evidence that kids as young as 11 were regular smokers, and she will be seeking to study them once they reach 15.

The study will look at memory function in cannabis users by hooking them up to a brain scanner and giving the participants memory exercises.

"We'll look at what's going on in their brains, how hard they have to work to get the right answers," she said.

"That's where you get lots of pretty coloured blobs."

The main focus of the nearly half-a-million-dollar grant is to look at how memory is affected over time.

Titled "Quantifying the neurocognitive impact of cannabis across the life span: The evolution of memory deficits", the research would involve established smokers from 15 years to middle adulthood. "We and others around the world have found marijuana users don't appear to have any serious brain damage, but there are impairments in memory and retention," she said.

But most studies had looked at adults, so Dr Solowij's team was taking it to a new level by looking at young smokers.

She said some research suggested there could be long-term damage caused by smoking dope while the brain was still developing.

"We're not testing people who are stoned, we don't give them marijuana to smoke," she said.

The study was particularly relevant in the Illawarra where there were many cannabis users, she said.

Generally smokers were starting younger, down to 11 to 15 years, but fewer people were starting up overall.

Dr Solowij stressed she did not want to scare parents or alienate adolescents by saying those experimenting were killing their memories.

Rather, long-term persistent use at a young age was the concern.

© 2006 Illawarra Mercury

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