Effects of Marijuana on Human Reproduction

It is essential to understand the impact of Marijuana on fertility to advise people trying to get pregnant properly. While most people know that smoking marijuana can be harmful to sperm health, researchers wanted to find out if this was true for women as well.

The term Marijuana is commonly used to describe Cannabis. Demand for it is increasing every day. In most places, cannabis is now legal. The effects of Marijuana can be severe. It can prove to be very dangerous for the average person. It can also affect the fertility of the woman. The effects of Marijuana on fertility are important to be aware of before you start using Marijuana. The doctor will recommend the best thing for you if you're a marijuana user and are trying to get pregnant. Doctors will advise you and explain how marijuana can affect you and other aspects. The following information will help you understand how marijuana use affects fertility.

Reduce the sperm count

The fertility of both men and women is affected by marijuana consumption. The sperm count is decreased by smoking marijuana. The sperm count of men who has ever smoked marijuana is 29% lower than those who don't. Another study found that people who have used marijuana in the past have higher sperm counts than those who have never tried it. More research is being done to determine the long-term and short-term effects of marijuana on fertility.

However, there is still much to be done to understand the effects of marijuana on sperm health.

Create a problem in the process of ovulation

It is more challenging to test women fertility who have consumed marijuana than men. Although the research has direct contact with male semen, there is no direct measurement of female reproduction. However, the research shows that marijuana intake can affect ovulation. One study found that smoking marijuana can slow down the ovulation cycle by just a few days. If ovulation doesn't occur, no egg will be released and there will be no chance an egg will be fertilized.

All things considered, health experts agree that more research is needed on marijuana effects on health.

Effects of Marijuana on driving skills

In general, the use of marijuana can alter the perceptual functions although does not cause changes in sensory functions . The alteration of perceptual ability and difficulty concentrating or maintaining attention to their use of cannabinoids have been confirmed by simulation studies and real driving test. In these studies it was also found that subjects under the influence of these substances are aware of their state of alteration and tend to compensate by driving at low speeds, following distances to the vehicles that precede them, avoiding overtaking. Cannabis is the main illegal substance found in injuries from motor vehicle accidents, and frequently it is found associated in combination with alcohol or other drugs of abuse.

The drivers tested positive for marijuana with THC concentrations in the blood of more than 5 ng / mL were responsible for incidents at a rate significantly higher than the drivers test negative. Cannabis is eliminated very slowly by the body, in a study of regular smokers of cannabis were found measurable concentrations of THC even after a week of abstinence from smoking, and some of the subjects still had problems in the tests of driving ability. In a study of habitual heavy smokers, the presence of THC in the blood for an extended period thus seems to lead to cognitive deficits even after a long period of abstinence from smoking. 

The effects are divided into acute and chronic. The acute effects are associated with the recruitment of a single dose of drug, while those chronic derive from the use of a substance for a long period of time. These effects are amplified in the case of association of cannabis with alcohol or other psychoactive substances.

Effects on driving skills : 

Slowed reaction

Reduced perception to light stimuli peripheral

Reduced oculomotor control

Space-time distortion

Difficulty with coordination

Poor speed control, braking and acceleration errors

Minor judgement, risky overtaking manoeuvres

Impairment of attention, especially to perform multiple actions simultaneously

Reduction of the short-term memory

The acute effects

The acute effects of cannabis affect psychomotor functions needed to control and reduce intensely motor control, psychomotor speed, executive functions, the short-term memory and working memory (reaction time and accuracy). In general, the effect of cannabis - the phase "high" - lasts up to 2 hours after ingestion, although many studies highlight the continuing negative effects on cognitive and motor functions up to 10 hours after use.

Chronic Effects

The chronic use of cannabis may lead to a deterioration of memory processes, attention, manual dexterity, executive function and psychomotor speed. These effects may persist beyond the period of intoxication and worsen depending on the duration and frequency of use of the substance. These deficits are for the most part reversible through abstinence prolonged in time. However, many of these can be permanent.

Marijuana : Harm to the Fetus

THC, the psychoactive principle of cannabis, is a lipophilic molecule and this can easily cross the placental barrier. Specifically, one-third of THC present in the plasma can cross the placenta interfere with normal development of the fetus. In addition, it is likely that the overstimulation of this system during the critical stage of neuronal development of the fetus damages the nervous system functions. This is especially true in view of the evidence indicating that the activation of CB1 receptors by THC can induce neuronal cell death (apoptosis)  and the fact that the THC may affect the synthesis and release of endogenous cannabinoids.

Cannabis use in pregnancy: severely compromised fetal development

The cannabis use during pregnancy increases the risk of having a child under weight or premature labor. Some studies have noted that intrauterine exposure to cannabis causes serious problems in the development of the newborn with neurological and behavioral effects that include severe tremors, mental retardation and intellectual problems. In a study conducted by El Marroun (2010) on a sample of 7,452 women, we examined the relationship between cannabis use by the mother and the developing fetus. The results showed that among all the pregnant women examined, 245 women (3.3%) had used cannabis only before pregnancy and 214 women (2.9%) had smoked marijuana before and during the period of gestation. Among these, 173 (81%) had discontinued use early in pregnancy, while 41 (19%) had continued during all nine months. After an analysis of epidemiological and clinical data, the researchers came to the conclusion that cannabis, even if taken for a short period during pregnancy can adversely affect the growth and development of the fetus.

Cell Death

It can be assumed that when the immature brain is exposed to phytocannabinoids (exogenous cannabinoids) through the intake of marijuana by the mother, aberrant activation of signaling pathways of cell death may have marked effects on the development and differentiation of the nervous system fetal central . Exposure to cannabis in fact, sovrafisiologica induces a modulation of the endocannabinoid system and damages the temporal precision of the communication mechanisms of the system. This increases the likelihood of altering the genesis of synapses and the development of certain neuronal circuits.

Genetics, social deficits and cognitive impairment

The impact of pathogenic phytocannabinoids on the Central Nervous System (CNS) has been highlighted by a number of important epidemiological and clinical studies that document the impulsive behaviour  social deficits, cognitive damage, the consumption of drugs of abuse and psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia, depression and anxiety, in adult individuals who had been exposed to cannabis in utero and early adolescence.

Neuro-behavioral alteration of the child

A study carried out in an animal model (rodent) has shown that prenatal exposure to cannabis may harm the fetus. From the results it was found that the cannabinoid compounds are neuroteratogeni and are able, therefore, to induce long-lasting neuro-behavioral abnormalities in the offspring exposed to cannabis. The study also argues that several pre-clinical results are examined in line with clinical studies of reference related to hyperactivity, cognitive disorders and altered emotionality in humans exposed to cannabis prenatally.

Marijuana in Pregnancy

Because the false belief of harmlessness of marijuana, this is the most widely used illicit drug during pregnancy.

So far there is no evidence that marijuana use increases the risk of malformations, miscarriages or premature births. However, in patients who smoke more than six marijuana cigarettes a week, have the children from 2 years of age, the lower verbal ability and less memory capacity than other children. These children are also at increased risk of hyperactivity and depression. There are also studies that show an increased risk of leukaemia in children whose mothers smoked regular cigarettes and marijuana during pregnancy.

Marijuana effects on Cardiac frequency and Arterial Pressure

Recent results indicate that the practice of smoking marijuana and inject cocaine at the same time can cause a marked increase in the frequency and voltage a cardiac artery. Each drug alone produced cardiovascular effects, when combined, these effects were intensified and lasted longer. A cardiac frequency of the study subjects. Marijuana augments 29 beats per minute and cocaine 32 beats per minute. When given together, a cardiac frequency increase at 49 beats per minute, and this increase persisted, for longer. The drugs were administered to subjects while they were at rest. Normally, a person may smoke marijuana and inject cocaine and then do something that causes Infections which can greatly increase the risk of overloading the cardiovascular system.

Research indicates that THC impairs the immune system of the body, which can cause a wide variety of health problems. One study found that marijuana inhibited the actions of diseases that prevent key immune cells. Another study found that THC increased the risk of developing bacterial infections and tumours.

Cannabis as Medicine

The drug hemp has so many applications in medicine, most have already heard rumours somewhere. What is the situation but really like? Hemp is actually a miracle cure for everything? Or are just propaganda tales of

legalization proponents?

The first written information on the medical use of cannabis probably go back to a roughly 4,700 year-old Chinese textbook on botany and medicine. From 16 Century cannabis was incorporated into the herbals. Cannabis was introduced for the first crusade in the folk medicine and figured in many medicines monastery. Applications were rheumatic and bronchial disorders, cannabis was also generally prescribed as a substitute for opium. In the 19th Century it was also used for migraine, neuralgia, epilepsy-like seizures, insomnia, and more. Marijuana was, until it was in 1898, competes with aspirin and eventually replaced as a remedy by a wide range of new, synthetic drugs, in America the most commonly used painkillers. Between 1842 and 1900, cannabis preparations made there half the drugs sold out (Herer 1993). Dosage difficulties paradoxical effects and the development of synthetic drugs took the prescriptions in the 20th Century onwards, until about the mid-20th cannabis Century was almost completely banned worldwide. Today, the medical use of cannabis in many countries (even some U.S. states) allowed again. In Austria, however, it is still virtually impossible to get hold of legal cannabis as medicine!

The truth is, as always in the middle. Cannabis is not a panacea, of course, but today there are many applications where cannabis is an effective and low side effects medicine. The biggest advantage of cannabis as a medicine is its unusual security. The ratio of lethal to effective dose is estimated based on animal data on oral intake 20,000 to 1, and at least 1000 to 1 There is not a reliable indicator of person's death by marijuana use. Cannabis has damaging the advantage to disturb any physiological functions or organs, when taken in therapeutic doses. "

Anorexia and Cachexia

AIDS patients lose due to lack of appetite and malaise often greatly in a short period of weight. Patients report that after taking cannabis for the first time properly again feel appetite. An appetizing effect in AIDS and cancer is observed with daily doses of 5 mg THC. The dose may be increased as needed up to 20 milligrams daily. In a study with anorexics THC brought no success. Has recently been a positive influence on the weight of patients with Alzheimer's disease, the refusing food, reported (Volicer 1997). Surprisingly, it took under THC compared to placebo as well as disturbed behavior.

Pain

There are only a few studies. THC was effective in an oral dose of 15 or 20 mg effective as well for pain in cancer patients. There were, however, in some of the patients do not tolerate side effects. Cannabis products may seem to the effects of opiates potentiate (Welch 1992), so that a combined administration could prove for severe pain as useful because the effect of potent but problematic opiate massively reinforced, so that by these means smaller doses can be used . 

Other indications are migraine and other headache types , degenerative diseases of the musculoskeletal system, phantom pain, all pain disorders, in which a relaxation of smooth or striated muscle has a beneficial effect, as painful spasms, painful menstruation, ulcerative colitis, etc

Asthma

Cannabis has a strong bronchodilator effect. The effects of a marijuana cigarette or oral 15 mg THC correspond in bronchodilatory effect as the clinical doses of common asthma drugs such as salbutamol. After inhalation of the effect lasts about two hours. Instead of smoking cannabis would specifically for this application, evaporation and inhalation recommend using a vaporizer.

Depression

Repeats a soaring of THC or cannabis in reactive depression has been observed in the context of serious disease. After patient reports hemp in modern folk medicine, often used with the connivance of the doctors, even with endogenous depression

Crohn's disease

In Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammation of the bowel whose cause is still largely unexplained. The inflammation localized mainly in the small and large intestines and affect all intestinal wall layers. In 20-40% of cases, by chronic inflammation to fistula formation. These are channels that lead from the intestinal wall of other organs or through the abdominal wall to the outside. Crohn's disease is not curable.

Glaucoma

Local administration of THC reduces intraocular pressure in healthy subjects and glaucoma patients with no side effects on blood pressure and mood. The mechanism of action is not known. The effect lasts for 4 to 6 hours.