Pubdate: Tue, 14 Jul 2015
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2015 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Authors: Amy Becker, Christian Thurstone

NO PROOF POT IS SAFE FOR PTSD

The Colorado Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Society is concerned 
about the upcoming Colorado Board of Health hearing regarding adding 
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a qualifying condition for 
medical marijuana.

As child psychiatrists, we are concerned that marijuana may be toxic 
to brain development. Numerous studies show marijuana exposure during 
critical periods such as pregnancy, childhood, adolescence and early 
adulthood may alter brain development and predict future serious 
mental health problems. Also, there are no controlled trials showing 
marijuana to be safe and effective for PTSD. On the contrary, there 
is evidence that marijuana worsens the course of PTSD, which has been 
shown in recent studies. Therefore, while we support researching 
marijuana-based medications for various conditions, we do not support 
adding PTSD to the list of qualifying conditions at this time.

Amy Becker, M.D., Denver

Christian Thurstone, M.D., Denver

Amy Becker is president of the Colorado Child and Adolescent 
Psychiatric Society. Christian Thurstone is a former president of 
CCAPS and a current executive committee member.
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