Slacker effect focus of cannabis study

VANCOUVER — Apparent laziness caused by the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana persists even when the same amount of pot’s medicinal component is added, a new study suggests.

Lead author Mason Silveira, a PhD candidate in the University of British Columbia’s psychology department, said one part of the research done on rats involved giving them THC, the intoxicating part of cannabis, and having them choose between an easy or hard task to earn sugary treats.

Silveira said that under normal circumstances, most rats preferred the more difficult task to get more rewards but they switched to the easier option when given THC.

He said while the laziness finding was not surprising, adding the same ratio of a pain-relieving ingredient called cannabidiol, a combination present in some medical marijuana used for pain relief, did not block the so-called slacker effect.

Silveira said the rats’ ability to do a difficult challenge was not affected by THC, but they chose not to do it.

“There is also research pointing out that sometimes THC doesn’t affect all your cognitive abilities across the board. What’s interesting in our study is that it seems to primarily affect your ability to decide or choose whether you want to exert that cognitive ability,” he said.

“This study suggests that you can still do the harder things, it’s just that you don’t want to.”

He said the study, published Tuesday in the Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, suggests that while some people consider marijuana as a panacea for various ailments, the findings highlight a need for research that could allow people to enjoy the benefits of cannabis while considering its less desirable effects.

Cannabidiol is one of about 70 cannabinoids in cannabis, and the study used an equal part of it along with THC, Silveira said, adding that’s the same ratio of the two components in the Health Canada approved pain reliever Sativex, often prescribed for multiple sclerosis.