Cannabis use is associated with the development of psychosis in young adults, according to a BMJ study.

Researchers followed some 1900 German participants, aged 14 to 24 at baseline, to assess their use of cannabis and incidence of psychotic experiences. When participants with prior cannabis use and previous psychotic experiences at baseline were excluded, those who started using cannabis during the first 3.5-year period of follow-up were nearly twice as likely to experience psychotic symptoms within the subsequent 5-year period, compared with those who didn’t use cannabis (odds ratio, 1.9). And continuing use in the 5-year period was, similarly, associated with a doubling in risk relative to nonusers.

Editorialists write, “The results cast doubt on the argument that uncontrolled confounding explains the association between cannabis and psychosis.”

Source:BMJ