JUST ONE JOINT ENOUGH TO HARM TEENAGE BRAINS

Smoking pot just once as a teenager is enough to alter brain structure, a new study suggests. Scientists found that taking the drug just once or twice by the age of 14 led to greater grey matter in brain areas linked to emotion and memory. Although more brain cells might seem beneficial, in fact the developing teenage brain at this stage should be pruning cells, removing unwanted neural connections and allowing important links to be strengthened. In the study, greater brain volume was also associated with slightly worse IQ performance. Prof. Sir Robin Murray Professor of Psychiatric Research, King’s College London said: “It remains a small study and it is very surprising that persistent brain changes could result from the use of cannabis only once or twice.