Cannabis Misuse and Psychological Disorders

Findings and discussion of themes:

Introduction:

This chapter will discuss the relevant themes of the research topic. focus on providing literature review dissertation help. This chapter will use the useful evidence from the selected literature and present an elaborative and comprehensive discussion on each theme. Then this study will also discuss the gaps or limitations of the selected literature. Finally, this study will present a conclusion that will infer the main aspects of the entire findings and discussion of themes.

Discussion of themes:

Theme 1: The connection between cannabis misuse and different psychological disorders in adolescents:

Boden et al. (2020) discuss the life-course trajectory of cannabis used by adolescents in New Zealand. The authors mentioned that the higher the cannabis misuse in adolescent people the higher their vulnerability to develop a mental health condition. Evidence suggests that, in the UK and US, cannabis is associated with several usages such as improving memory, social interaction and sexual pleasure (Bryan et al. 2021). As mentioned by Prieto-Arenas et al. (2022), although the clear connection between cannabis misuse and mental illness is not still proven, clinical intervention shows the presence of depression and anxiety in the majority of the people who are involved in cannabis misuse.

As argued by Schaefer et al. (2021), although many studies suggest the correlation between depression and cannabis misuse, there is a lack of evidence regarding the factors that contribute to this correlation. These factors are socioeconomic factors, education, cultural trend, family background, parental care, provocation from peers and social environment (Hall et al. 2020). The data from NICE (2019) showed that more than 34% of the young people in the UK use high potency cannabis which is considered to increase the susceptibility towards different psychotic conditions such as depression, feeling of sadness and poor decision making. PHE (2019) mentioned in a report that, more than 18% of the people who live with depression are involved in cannabis misuse as compared to 9% of the people without depression. Many clinical interventions suggest that although there is no direct proof regarding the connection between cannabis misuse and depression, it is acknowledged that in the early onset of depression there is an increased risk of misuse of high potency cannabis in patients. The PHE (2019) mentioned that, out of the 18% of young people in the UK who are involved in cannabis misuse, more than 7% use cannabis regularly (PHE, 2019).

On the contrary PHE (2019) reported that in the UK cannabis is sold under medical guidelines to ensure that people cannot use high potent cannabis. In this context, Schaefer et al. (2021) mentioned in their study that, there is high controversy regarding whether cannabis misuse triggers mental illness in people or people who have depression and other mental health conditions are more vulnerable to using high potent cannabis. Many studies mentioned that cannabis is a psychotic medicine that is involved in creating a relaxing as well as euphoric effect (Brice et al. 2019). In this context, the reports of the HR government show that cannabis misuse is co siders as the most common and potential substance misuse in young people with depression. The report from the HR government also shows that more than 88% of young adults who suffer from different mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, psychosis and dementia have a history of cannabis misuse.

Theme 2: Many factors contribute to the correlation between depression and cannabis misuse in adolescents:

As mentioned by Boden et al. (2020), many factors contribute to the connection between cannabis misuse and depression in adolescents. These factors are the family environment, parental care, education, friend circle, provocations from peers, society environment, and social factors and economic factors.

Evidence suggests that adolescents who have tormented and unsupportive family environments are more likely to be involved in cannabis misuse at an early age. Prieto-Arenas et al. (2022) mentioned that many school students are addicted to cannabis and other drugs due to their family members also having a history of substance misuse and addiction to drugs and alcohol. In this context, Schaefer et al. (2021) mentioned family and societal environment influence a lot on the behaviour and cognitive health of adolescents and children. Many studies suggest that the lack of parental care, poor support from society and lack of appreciation and admiration make trigger depression and anxiety in many children who are considered the potential facilitators to lead them toward cannabis misuse.

According to Hall et al. (2020), the socio-economic condition of people also influences the relations between cannabis use and mental health. The authors also mentioned that cannabis use and mental issues are more common in poor socioeconomic classes as compared to adolescents who belong to the rich class. Empirical studies suggest that adolescents belonging to poor families do not have a better education, parental care and social support which leads them towards unhealthy addictions such as cannabis use. Cannabis triggers the psychotropic effect after reaching blood which impacts adversely brain functioning, decision making, cognitive skill and problem-solving skill in children and young people.

Theme 3: People with personality and behavioural disorders can be vulnerable to cannabis misuse:

According to Wilson et al. (2019), a personality disorder is a psychological health condition, in which a person can show abnormal behavioural presentation and weird personal characteristics. Many researchers consider people with personality and behavioural disorders are highly vulnerable to involve to cannabis misuse. On the contrary Boden et al. (2020) argued that despite many studies supporting the relationship between personality and behavioural disorders and cannabis misuse, there is a lack of clear evidence that can support the fact. The authors also mentioned in the research paper, that that prolonged use of high potency cannabis has severe impacts on the behaviour and personality of adolescents. Bryan et al. (2021) conducted a cross-sectional survey in which authors noticed a different behavioural pattern in three different groups: frequent cannabis users, regular cannabis users and recent cannabis users.

Prieto-Arenas et al (2022) mentioned in their research article that behavioural issues are noticed in adolescent cannabis users between 13-and 16 years. This article also mentioned that adolescents and children who are addicted to substance misuses such as cannabis, alcohol, illicit drugs and tobacco are highly susceptible to a mental health conditions in later life such as depressive symptoms or psychosis. In supporting this statement Schaefer et al. (2021) mentioned in their research article, that cannabis consists of Δ9–tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) which is the major psychotic component that is mixed with blood after using cannabis thereby causing a psychotic effect in adolescents.

As stated by Wilson et al. (2019) while discussing the toxicity of cannabis and other products, it must be stated that Δ9–tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the most addictive component that is present in cannabis. Clinical interventions suggest that after entering the body Δ9–tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is transformed to 11-OH-THC (11-Hydroxy-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol) which is another potential psychoactive component that has potential influence on the behaviour, activities and performance of adolescent. According to Schaefer et al. (2021), cannabis s considers one of the potential interfering factors that impact adversely mental function and brain development. Clinical evidence suggests that Δ9–tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is considered to be involved in altering the secretion of neurotransmitters in the synaptic cleft. As stated by Prieto-Arenas et al. (2022), the lowering of secretion of neurotransmitters is found in adolescents who use cannabis regularly. The alteration in the neurotransmitter leads to develop abnormal changes in the behaviour and activities of adolescents.

Theme 4: Cannabis misuse during adolescent enhance risk of psychotic disorders in later life:

As mentioned by Brice et al. (2019), adolescent who are involved in cannabis misuse are more likely to have risk of psychotic disorders in later life. However, there are huge controversies regarding this statement. Some studies on mental health suggest that, although the direct connection between the depression and cannabis misuse is not established, many clinical interventions show the vulnerability of adolescence to depression, anxiety and other psychotic Illness in later life if adolescent are addicted to cannabis and substance misuse. On the contrary Boden et al. (2020) argued that, there is no apparent evidence which supports the connection between the psychotic disorders in later life of adolescent and cannabis misuse. The authors also stated that, many cases of cannabis misuse in adolescents are registered in the UK in which there is no occurrence of psychotic disorders in later life. On supporting this view Prieto-Arenas et al. (2022) mentioned that, psychotic disorders are related to many factors such as physical health, mental health, social and economic standard of people, family support and social support. In this context, adolescents who are involved in cannabis misuse can develop psychotic disorders in later life, but it is not evident that whether cannabis misuse is the sole reason behind these psychotic illness or other factors are also contributing to the condition.

PHE (2019) mentioned in a report that, more than 18% of the people who live with depression are involved in cannabis misuse as compared to 9% of the people without depression. As mentioned by Schaefer et al. (2021), although there is no clear evidence regarding the connection between the cannabis misuse and the psychotic disorders in later life, it is acknowledged that, adolescents with cannabis misuse are more susceptible to psychotic disorders in later life as compared to adolescent who do not use cannabis. On the contrary Wilson et al. (2019) argued that, psychotic illnesses such as depression and anxiety in adolescents in later life may trigger cannabis misuse and drug addiction. Despite different controversial statement regarding the connection between psychotic disorders and the cannabis misuse in adolescent, it can be stated that, cannabis misuse causes alteration in the neurotransmitter and neural functions which are associated with regulating the cognitive functions such as decision making, problem solving, thoughts, ideas development and critical thinking. Many clinical interventions suggest that, adolescents who use high potent cannabis have high risk of depression, poor decision making, anxiety and lack of self-confidence (Boden et al. 2020).This is because of reduction of the secretion of neurotransmitter in the synaptic cleft which leads to further reduction of neuronal function as the age grow thereby causing psychotic disorders in later life.

Conclusion:

From the above-mentioned discussion, it can be concluded that cannabis use is considered the potential facilitator of mental illness in adolescents. Cannabis is considered one of the most effective psychoactive drugs that cause a relaxing effect. It is stated that excessive use of high potency cannabis in adolescents can trigger depression and anxiety. From clinical interventions, it is seen that adolescents who are regular cannabis users are more vulnerable to suffering from depression as compared to adolescents who are non-cannabis users, many factors contribute to the correlation between cannabis use and mental illness such as socioeconomic factors, lack of social support, family and social environment, and provocation from peers. Government must implement effective policies and regulations on cannabis usage and selling to reduce its impact on the mental health of children and young people.

Reference list:

Boden, J. M., Dhakal, B., Foulds, J. A., & Horwood, L. J. (2020). Life-course trajectories of cannabis use: a latent class analysis of a New Zealand birth cohort. ofdiction, 115(2), 279-290. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/add.14814

Bolanis, D., Orri, M., Castellanos-Ryan, N., Renaud, J., Montreuil, T., Boivin, M., Vitaro, F., Tremblay, R.E., Turecki, G., Côté, S.M. and Séguin, J.R., 2020. Cannabis use, depression and suicidal ideation in adolescence: direction of associations in a population based cohort. Journal of affective disorders, 274, pp.1076-1083.

Brice, L., Zdanowicz, N., de Becker, E., de Timary, P. and Lorant, V., 2019. Adolescents in Transition to Young Adulthood: Evolution of Mental Health Status and Risk Factors Associated With Depressive and Anxiety Disorder. Psychiatria Danubina, 31(suppl 3), pp.371-375.

Bryan, M.A., Charron, E., Adeoye-Olatunde, O., Brown, J., Ghitza, U., Winhusen, T.J. and Cochran, G., 2021. Concomitant cannabis misuse and associations with depression, pain and substance misuse among patients prescribed opioids. Pharmacy, 9(3), p.134.

Hall, W., Leung, J. and Lynskey, M., 2020. The effects of cannabis use on the development of adolescents and young adults. Annual Review of Developmental Psychology, 2, pp.461-483.

Prieto-Arenas, L., Díaz, I. and Arenas, M.C., 2022. Gender Differences in Dual Diagnoses Associated with Cannabis Use: A Review. Brain Sciences, 12(3), p.388.

Schaefer, J.D., Hamdi, N.R., Malone, S.M., Vrieze, S., Wilson, S., McGue, M. and Iacono, W.G., 2021. Associations between adolescent cannabis use and young-adult functioning in three longitudinal twin studies. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(14).

Schaefer, J.D., Hamdi, N.R., Malone, S.M., Vrieze, S., Wilson, S., McGue, M. and Iacono, W.G., 2021. Associations between adolescent cannabis use and young-adult functioning in three longitudinal twin studies. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(14).

Wilson, J., Freeman, T.P. and Mackie, C.J., 2019. Effects of increasing cannabis potency on adolescent health. The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, 3(2), pp.121-128.

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