How does marijuana affect the brain?

Have you ever wondered what goes on in your head when you use marijuana? What is it doing to your brain? When done right, a little strength makes music, food, and other sensual pleasures even more intense and simply great. Why and what is happening, we have answers for the casual user.

As with alcohol, heroin, and other intoxicants, things definitely happen when you drink. Some well, some with caution. As research advances our understanding of the brain, and indeed the brain in the high state, we still have a long way to go. Currently 50% of cannabis research is focused on the negative aspects of the plant, however there seems to be a strong interest in learning more about the benefits, particularly for medicinal purposes.

Alcohol disrupts the brain’s communication channels and can affect the way the brain looks and works. This makes it harder for the brain areas that control balance, memory, language, and judgment to do their job, leading to a higher likelihood of injury and other negative outcomes.

Marijuana use directly affects brain function, specifically the parts of the brain responsible for memory, learning, attention, decision-making, coordination, emotions, and reaction time.

Photo by Flickr user AJC1

RELATED: Science says medical marijuana improves quality of life

Effects can vary depending on how potent the plant is, how it was consumed (smoking, edible, oil, etc.), and past use. It could:

• Sharpen your senses (colors might appear brighter and sounds might appear louder)
• Distort your sense of time
• affect motor skills
• break down inhibitions

THC also activates the brain’s reward system, which includes regions that control the response to healthy, pleasurable behaviors like sex and eating, via cannabinoid receptors. Like most other drugs that people abuse, THC stimulates neurons in the reward system to release the signaling chemical dopamine in higher amounts than are normally observed with natural reward stimuli. Researchers have also confirmed the effect on time perception in both humans and animals.

Photo by Matthew Henry via Burst

Short-term cannabis use seems to increase the time you spend in deep sleep, the phase when you wake up refreshed. But THC decreases the time you spend in REM (rapid eye movement) sleep when you spend more time dreaming, processing emotions, and solidifying new memories.

This information focuses on occasional use by those over the age of 21. Brain development does not stop until around the age of 25. Marijuana and alcohol use, especially heavy users, can stunt brain development that may be irreversible. As with other drugs, long-term heavy use can lead to serious complications.

RELATED: Winning PTSD Combo? According to a new study, low-dose THC is effective when combined with therapy

Marijuana and medical marijuana offer safer and better options than alcohol and some pain relievers. They also offer proven treatments for ailments from pain to nausea and cancer treatments. Hopefully it will be a matter of time before more research is done to better understand the plant and see its potential more clearly.