Pubdate: Tue, 13 Jan 2015
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2015 The Associated Press
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Author: Kristen Wyatt, The Associated Press

PANEL CALLS FOR MORE POT STUDY

Doctors Look at Health Effects of Pot in Research

A year after legalizing recreational pot sales, Colorado has more 
questions than answers about the health effects of legal marijuana.

A panel of doctors concluded months of meetings Monday about the 
health effects of marijuana and how people are using it. Instead of 
reaching many conclusions, though, the doctors agreed the bulk of 
their recommendations should be calls for more research on the drug.

For example, the doctors looked at research on maternal pot use, or 
whether marijuana use by pregnant or nursing women affects their children.

They concluded there is "mixed evidence" that marijuana use by 
pregnant women results in birth defects. But their recommendation 
calls only for better education and surveys to find out more about 
maternal pot use, not a ban on selling pot to pregnant women.

The head of the physician panel, Mike Van Dyke of the Colorado 
Department of Public Health and Environment, said the doctors wanted 
to be careful not to call for health restrictions in light of 
extremely limited data on marijuana's health effects.

"We're a year into it. We don't have the answers yet," Van Dyke said. 
"We don't know what the health effects of legalization are."

The panel included pediatricians, toxicologists and an addiction psychiatrist.

Among the gaps the doctors identified was pot use by adults. Doctors 
have years of survey data on how schoolchildren use drugs including 
pot, but not much on how adults use pot.

Dr. Laura Borgelt, a pharmacologist at the University of Colorado 
Denver, pointed out that there's little known about adults aged 18 to 
25, people old enough to be out of the house but young enough to be 
trying pot for the first time.

The panel also plans to ask for a study about the health effects of 
marijuana use by skiers.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom