Overview
BrainHealth researchers are investigating the connection between cannabis use and poor sleep, a common life experience that is associated with diminished performance. A growing cannabis industry, increasing both recreational and medical us of cannabis, has prompted some scientists to delve into potential impact of long-term use of the substance, or cannabis use disporder (CUD), which is defined as using cannabis regularly, more than 5 days per week during the past year).Published in The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, the study documents research led by Francesca Filbey, PhD, from the Laboratory of Neuroimaging of Reward Dynamics at The University of Texas at Dallas’ Center for BrainHealth, in collaboration with a team from the University of Amsterdam. The Role of Sleep in the Link Between Cannabis Use tracks 141 adults with CUD and 87 non-current users participated in an effort to fill a gap in research testing how sleep impacts memory among cannabis users.“”
“Although sleep is one of the primary reasons people use cannabis, our findings suggest that long-term cannabis use actually results in poorer sleep, which is associated with poorer memory. These findings are useful to inform the consumers, clinicians and policymakers about the therapeutic considerations for cannabis, particularly regarding its use as a sleep aid. For researchers, this study points to the importance of analyzing sleep when evaluating the effects of cannabis on brain health.”
– Tracy Brown, lab member, lead author and psychology PhD student at UT Dallas
Read the full article at SciTecDaily