Symptoms of psychosis include hallucinations, delusions, and changes in mood and behavior.
This is not the first time research has pointed out the detrimental effects of marijuana on the teen brain. In the ACPeds position statement,
Marijuana Use: Detrimental to Youth
, ACPeds member Dr. Donald Hagler references 50 different research articles to show just how vulnerable the rapidly developing teenage brain is to the negative effects of marijuana use.
These harmful effects include
distorted perceptions, psychotic symptoms, difficulty with thinking and problem solving, disrupted learning and memory, and impaired reaction time, attention span, judgment, balance and coordination
. Despite all this research, marijuana use by adolescents has grown steadily as more states legalize medicinal (and even recreational) marijuana use.