<table style="border:1px solid #adadad; background-color: #F3F1EC; color: #666666; padding:8px; -webkit-border-radius:4px; border-radius:4px; -moz-border-radius:4px; line-height:16px; margin-bottom:6px;" width="100%">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><span style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:20px;font-weight:bold;">PsyPost – Psychology News Daily Digest (Unofficial)</span></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td> </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<table style="font:13px Helvetica, sans-serif; border-radius:4px; -moz-border-radius:4px; -webkit-border-radius:4px; background-color:#fff; padding:8px; margin-bottom:6px; border:1px solid #adadad;" width="100%">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/psilocybin-triggers-inner-healing-mechanisms-in-depression-patients-study-suggests/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Psilocybin triggers “inner healing” mechanisms in depression patients, study suggests</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Aug 4th 2024, 10:00</div>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; color:#494949;text-align:justify;font-size:13px;">
<p><p>A recent study explored whether taking a single high dose of psilocybin, the active compound in “magic mushrooms,” can trigger a sense of “inner healing,” where individuals feel like their bodies and minds are naturally healing themselves. The results showed that participants who received a high dose of psilocybin reported stronger feelings of inner healing compared to those who received a placebo. These findings were published in the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/02698811241239206"><em>Journal of Psychopharmacology</em></a>.</p>
<p>Psychedelics are substances that profoundly alter perception, mood, and cognitive processes. These include natural compounds like psilocybin and synthetic ones like LSD. They can induce vivid hallucinations, an altered sense of time, and deep emotional and introspective experiences, primarily through their action on serotonin receptors in the brain.</p>
<p>Users of psychedelics often report that these substances facilitate profound inner healing by promoting emotional release and introspection. This healing process may involve revisiting and reprocessing traumatic memories in a more detached and insightful manner. Psychedelics can also create a sense of interconnectedness and unity, alleviating feelings of isolation and depression. The altered states of consciousness they produce can sometimes lead to transformative insights. However, it remains unclear whether this inner healing is a real phenomenon or simply a commonly reported experience among enthusiastic users.</p>
<p>To explore this, study author Joseph Peill and his colleagues hypothesized that individuals who received a high dose of psilocybin would report a stronger feeling of “inner healing” activation compared to those who received a low, placebo-like dose. They conducted their study with 59 participants who had moderate-to-severe depression. This experiment was part of a larger study comparing the effects of synthetic psilocybin treatment with those of the antidepressant escitalopram, both administered alongside psychological support.</p>
<p>Study participants were 59 individuals with moderate-to-severe depression. This experiment was a part of a wider study that compared the effects of a synthetic psilocybin treatment and a treatment with the antidepressant escitalopram, administered alongside matching psychological support.</p>
<p>For this specific part of the study, participants were divided into two groups. One group received 25 mg of psilocybin, while the other group received 1 mg, acting as a placebo. The study was double-blind, meaning participants did not know which dose they received. After the effects of the psilocybin wore off, participants were asked to rate their agreement with the statement, “I felt like my body/mind/brain was healing itself, automatically/naturally/by itself.”</p>
<p>Participants also completed various assessments, including the Beck Depression Inventory for depressive symptoms, the Emotional Breakthrough Inventory, the Mystical Experience Questionnaire, the Challenging Experiences Questionnaire, the Altered States of Consciousness questionnaire, and a general measure of drug effect intensity.</p>
<p>The findings showed that participants who received the higher dose of psilocybin reported significantly stronger feelings of inner healing compared to those who received the placebo dose. This suggests that the experience of inner healing might be a genuine component of the psilocybin experience.</p>
<p>Importantly, the study found a correlation between higher inner healer scores and greater reductions in depressive symptoms two weeks after the treatment, but only in the group that received the high dose. This indicates that the feeling of inner healing might play a role in the therapeutic effects of psilocybin.</p>
<p>Importantly, the researchers controlled for the general intensity of the drug effects to ensure that the inner healing scores were not simply a result of a more intense psychedelic experience. Even after accounting for this, the correlation between inner healing and reduced depression remained significant. This finding supports the idea that the inner healing mechanism is not merely a byproduct of the psychedelic experience’s intensity but might be an independent and meaningful therapeutic factor.</p>
<p>“The principle of activating inner healing mechanisms via psychedelics is scientifically nascent; however, this study takes a positivist and pragmatic step forward, asking whether it warrants further examination,” the study authors concluded.</p>
<p>The study makes a valuable contribution to the scientific understanding of the psychological effects of psilocybin. However, it should be noted that the number of study participants was relatively small and that “inner healer” feelings were self-reported through a single statement.</p>
<p>The paper, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/02698811241239206">Psychedelics and the ‘inner healer’: Myth or mechanism?,</a>” was authored by Joseph Peill, Miriam Marguilho, David Erritzoe, Tommaso Barba, Kyle T Greenway, Fernando Rosas, Christopher Timmermann, and Robin Carhart-Harris.</p></p>
</div>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:13px; text-align: center; color: #666666; padding:4px; margin-bottom:2px;"></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<table style="font:13px Helvetica, sans-serif; border-radius:4px; -moz-border-radius:4px; -webkit-border-radius:4px; background-color:#fff; padding:8px; margin-bottom:6px; border:1px solid #adadad;" width="100%">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/unlocking-the-hidden-power-of-art-how-creative-expression-boosts-well-being/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Unlocking the hidden power of art: How creative expression boosts well-being</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Aug 4th 2024, 08:00</div>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; color:#494949;text-align:justify;font-size:13px;">
<p><p>When you think about the word “art,” what comes to mind? A child’s artwork pinned to the fridge? A favorite artist whose work always inspires? Abstract art that is hard to understand?</p>
<p>Each of these assumes that making art is something that other people do, such as children or “those with talent.”</p>
<p>However, as I explain in my book “<a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-expressive-instinct-9780197646229?q=the%20expressive%20instinct&lang=en&cc=ca">The Expressive Instinct</a>,” art is intrinsic to human evolution and history. Just as sports or workouts exercise the body, creating art exercises the imagination and is essential to mental as well as physical well-being.</p>
<p>I am a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=C8R2XOYAAAAJ&hl=en">professor of art therapy</a> who studies how creative self-expression affects physical and emotional health. In our clinical research studies, my colleagues and I are finding that any form of creative self-expression – including drawing, painting, fiber arts, woodworking or photography – can <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/08322473.2017.1375827">reduce stress</a>, improve mood and increase self-confidence.</p>
<p>As a sickly child who needed to stay home from school a lot, I found that making art helped me cope. Today, creating art is my sanctuary. I use it as a sounding board to better understand myself and a way to recharge and learn from the challenges of life.</p>
<h2>The uniquely human attribute of creativity</h2>
<p>Although everyone has their own concept of what defines art, one thing is universally true: Creativity is a defining feature of the human species.</p>
<p>How so? Well, human brains are not computers processing data. They are biological prediction machines that perceive the environment through memories and the senses, with the capacity to <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2010.00025">use that information to imagine</a> plausible future scenarios.</p>
<p>These inherent predictive and imaginative capacities are the wellspring of humanity’s abilities to survive and thrive – because self-expression is a safety valve that helps us cope with uncertainty. No one truly knows the future; they must live each day not sure of what will happen tomorrow. Art can help us all practice this imaginative muscle in a useful way.</p>
<p>In our study examining brain activity while using virtual reality tools to create 3-D digital artwork, my team demonstrated that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/07421656.2021.1957341">creative expression is a natural state of being</a>. The brain naturally uses fewer cognitive resources to be expressive and creative, compared with the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/07421656.2021.1957341">brain power needed to do a rote task</a> that requires conscious effort.</p>
<p>Seemingly ordinary everyday activities can provide opportunities to tap into one’s natural creativity and imagination: whipping up a meal from leftovers, figuring out an alternate route to work, dancing a little jig in response to hearing a song, or planting and tending a garden.</p>
<p>We have repeatedly found in our studies that even a single session of real and honest self-expression can improve self-confidence and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1534735420912835">reduce feelings of stress</a>, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejon.2019.08.006">anxiety and burnout</a>.</p>
<p>This is partly because <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2017.05.004">creativity activates reward pathways</a> in the brain. Using our hands and bodies to express ourselves activates dopamine pathways and helps us feel good. Dopamine is a neural messenger that is associated with feeling a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.ajpath.2015.09.023">sense of hope, accomplishment or reward</a>. Our brains are wired to secrete <a href="https://theconversation.com/why-does-experiencing-flow-feel-so-good-a-communication-scientist-explains-173505">feel-good hormones whenever we move</a>, create something or engage in any type of expressive activity.</p>
<p>Tapping into the creative resources within is <a href="https://theconversation.com/drawing-making-music-and-writing-poetry-can-support-healing-and-bring-more-humanity-to-health-care-in-us-hospitals-204684">one of the most underrated seeds of well-being</a> in the world.</p>
<p>By comparison, bottling up or <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-the-secrets-you-keep-are-hurting-you/">denying these feelings can cause distress</a>, anxiety and fear because we have not processed and expressed them. This is probably one of the reasons why every community around the world has its own creative and expressive practices. Even our ancestors in Indigenous communities all around the world intuitively knew that <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2021.101879">self-expression was essential</a> to emotional health and social connection.</p>
<p>Being unable to share our lives, <a href="https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-the-secrets-you-keep-are-hurting-you/">keeping secrets</a> and feeling isolated and lonely tend <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.02.002">to worsen our health</a>. To our brains, social isolation feels like a chronic disease because it interprets this loneliness and inability to express as a threat to survival.</p>
<p>Since creative expression can engage the senses, it can also be a body workout: a sensual as well as emotional and cognitive experience. Being active in expression – be it art, music, dance, drama, writing, culinary arts or working with nature – imparts a sense of confidence and hope that <a href="https://global.oup.com/academic/product/the-expressive-instinct-9780197646229?q=the%20expressive%20instinct&lang=en&cc=ca">challenges can be navigated and overcome</a>.</p>
<h2>The role of art therapy</h2>
<p>Given the integral role of art in our lives, it makes sense that making art can help people manage transitions, adversity and trauma, such as the stresses of puberty, the death of a loved one or <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejon.2019.08.006">experiencing a serious illness</a>.</p>
<p>According to a global study, 1 in 2 people will experience a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(23)00193-1">mental-health-related challenge in their lifetime</a>, whether from life’s challenges, genetic predispositions or a combination of the two.</p>
<p>This is where art therapy can come in. Art therapy is <a href="https://arttherapy.org/about-art-therapy/">a regulated mental health profession</a> in which clinical psychotherapists with extensive clinical training offer psychotherapy to patients with diagnosed mental health needs.</p>
<p>The origins of art therapy go back to <a href="https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2017-021448">attempts to treat soldiers struggling with post-traumatic stress</a> during the 20th century’s two world wars. Today there is evidence that traumatic experiences tend to be stored as <a href="http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7316-0473">sounds, images and physical sensations</a> in the brain. When someone <a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2019.20825">lacks the words</a> to process these experiences through traditional talk therapy, art therapy can provide an indirect way to express and externalize those feelings and memories.</p>
<figure><figcaption><em><span class="caption">The process of making art can help people process feelings that they aren’t able to put into words.</span></em></figcaption></figure>
<p> </p>
<p>One of art therapy’s unique strengths is that it provides nonverbal ways of communicating, processing and eventually managing the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. In fact, in a recent study, my team has found that a personal history of trauma is related to <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1337927">how people react to evocative images</a>. Images of distress and pain resonate with us when we have known similar kinds of distress ourselves. This implies that our life stories make us sensitized to distress in others and even personalize it more.</p>
<p>Creative self-expression is especially relevant in coping with trauma because it provides an outlet through which a person <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1534735420912835">can regain a sense of agency</a> and control.</p>
<h2>How to bring creativity into daily life</h2>
<p>For those new to exploring art as a creative pursuit or for well-being reasons, engaging in creative activities begins with letting go of unrealistic expectations. Being creative isn’t about becoming a famous artist or even a mediocre one. It is about allowing ourselves to flex the creative muscle that we all have and enjoying all the sensory and emotional aspects of imagining.</p>
<p>Next, think about activities that made you feel free to explore when you were a child. Did you like singing, playing in the outdoors, dancing, making up pretend plays, or writing little tales? Allow yourself to indulge in any and all of these creative pursuits that made you feel relaxed and joyful.</p>
<p>A <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aip.2021.101879">cultural tradition</a>, tinkering with electronics, making a gift for someone or simply paying attention to everyday beauty – any of these can be a creative activity. And just like any muscle, the more you exercise it, the stronger it becomes. Over time, you will notice yourself getting more confident and adventurous in your creative practices.</p>
<p>Whatever it is, make time for this creative pursuit every week – which is possibly the hardest step of them all. If it seems “unimportant” compared with the demands of daily life, such as work or family, try thinking of it as another form of sustenance.</p>
<p>Remember that creativity is just as critical to human health as <a href="https://theconversation.com/helping-children-eat-healthier-foods-may-begin-with-getting-parents-to-do-the-same-research-suggests-225157">eating nutritious meals</a> or <a href="https://theconversation.com/yoga-modern-research-shows-a-variety-of-benefits-to-both-body-and-mind-from-the-ancient-practice-197662">getting exercise</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-the-best-diet-for-healthy-sleep-a-nutritional-epidemiologist-explains-what-food-choices-will-help-you-get-more-restful-zs-219955">good rest</a>. So as the Latin saying goes: “Plene vivere.” Live fully.</p>
<p> </p>
<p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/making-art-is-a-uniquely-human-act-and-one-that-provides-a-wellspring-of-health-benefits-219091">original article</a>.</em></p></p>
</div>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:13px; text-align: center; color: #666666; padding:4px; margin-bottom:2px;"></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<table style="font:13px Helvetica, sans-serif; border-radius:4px; -moz-border-radius:4px; -webkit-border-radius:4px; background-color:#fff; padding:8px; margin-bottom:6px; border:1px solid #adadad;" width="100%">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/fathers-less-likely-to-see-masculinity-as-fragile-research-shows/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Fathers less likely to see masculinity as fragile, research shows</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Aug 4th 2024, 06:00</div>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; color:#494949;text-align:justify;font-size:13px;">
<p><p>A recent study published in the journal <em><a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19419899.2024.2366863" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Psychology & Sexuality</a></em> provides intriguing insights into how fatherhood impacts men’s perceptions of masculinity and sexuality. The research reveals that fathers experience higher levels of both sexual esteem and sexual depression compared to non-fathers. Additionally, fathers are less likely to endorse the notion that masculinity is fragile and must be constantly maintained.</p>
<p>While societal perceptions of fatherhood have evolved significantly, with increasing recognition of the <a href="https://www.psypost.org/women-view-men-as-more-attractive-when-they-see-them-with-kids-study-finds/">so-called “Dad I’d Like to F*ck” (DILF) phenomenon</a>, little is known about how men themselves perceive their masculinity and sexuality upon becoming fathers. This gap in the literature prompted the researchers to explore whether fatherhood enhances or undermines men’s sense of masculinity and sexual self-esteem.</p>
<p>Historically, masculinity has been closely tied to ideals such as stoicism, dominance, and independence. However, modern fatherhood often demands a different set of attributes, such as emotional expressiveness, nurturing, and active participation in childcare and domestic duties. These evolving expectations can create a tension for men, potentially challenging their traditional views of masculinity.</p>
<p>Additionally, the researchers sought to identify specific factors that contribute to sexual esteem and depression among fathers. Previous research suggested that factors like parental stress, changes in partner dynamics, and self-perceived masculinity could significantly impact a father’s sexual wellbeing. By exploring these predictors, the researchers hoped to gain insights into how fatherhood affects men’s sexual identity and mental health.</p>
<p>The study utilized an online survey to collect data from 564 participants, ultimately resulting in a final sample of 490 individuals after data cleaning. The participants were primarily heterosexual White men from North America. The sample included 138 fathers and 352 non-fathers.</p>
<p>Participants first completed a demographic questionnaire, providing information on age, gender identity, ethnicity, sexual orientation, relationship status, and level of education. Fathers were asked additional questions regarding their fatherhood status, including whether they had biological, step, adopted, or foster children.</p>
<p>The primary measures used in the study included scales for sexual esteem, sexual depression, and precarious manhood beliefs. Sexual esteem was assessed using a five-item subscale evaluating individuals’ confidence and satisfaction with their sexual abilities. Sexual depression was measured with another five-item subscale focusing on negative emotions and dissatisfaction related to one’s sexual life. Precarious manhood beliefs were gauged through an adapted version of a seven-item scale, with questions tailored to assess personal beliefs about the fragility of one’s masculinity.</p>
<p>Fathers also completed additional items to capture their perceptions of masculinity before and after becoming a parent, their levels of parental stress and exhaustion, and changes in their own and their partner’s sex drive since becoming parents. The survey was administered through the Qualtrics platform, and data collection occurred between June 2020 and July 2021.</p>
<p>The study revealed several significant differences between fathers and non-fathers in terms of their sexual and masculinity-related perceptions. Fathers reported higher levels of sexual esteem than non-fathers, suggesting a greater confidence in their sexual abilities and desirability. However, fathers also experienced higher levels of sexual depression, indicating more negative emotions related to their sexual lives. This duality suggests that fatherhood can intensify both positive and negative sexual perceptions.</p>
<p>Fathers also endorsed precarious manhood beliefs to a lesser extent than non-fathers, implying that they viewed their masculinity as more stable and less easily threatened. This finding aligns with the notion that fatherhood might provide a sense of completeness and reinforce a man’s masculine identity by fulfilling traditional roles of provider and caregiver.</p>
<p>Further analysis among fathers identified specific predictors of sexual esteem and depression. A high personal sex drive was a significant predictor of greater sexual esteem, indicating that fathers who maintained a strong interest in sex felt more positive about their sexual identity.</p>
<p>In contrast, sexual depression among fathers was predicted by high levels of parental stress, low partner sex drive, and low self-perceived masculinity after becoming a parent. These factors suggest that both external pressures (like stress and partner dynamics) and internal perceptions of masculinity significantly impact fathers’ sexual wellbeing.</p>
<p>“This study adds to the limited research on fatherhood and sexuality throughout the lifespan,” the researchers concluded. “Our findings indicate that fathers have lower endorsement of precarious manhood beliefs, greater sexual esteem, and greater sexual depression than non-fathers.”</p>
<p>“Further, we found that sexual esteem and depression during fatherhood were predicted by constructs related directly or indirectly to masculine norms; sexual esteem was predicted by high personal sex drive, while sexual depression was predicted by low partner sex drive, low self-perceived masculinity, and high parental stress. These findings illustrate the need for further investigation regarding men’s perceptions and expressions of masculine norms during fatherhood, and the resulting effects of their sexual wellbeing.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/19419899.2024.2366863" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The virility-fertility tradeoff: effects of fatherhood on (precarious) masculinity, sexual esteem, and sexual depression</a>,” was authored by Shelby Hughes, Flora Oswald, and Cory L. Pedersen.</p></p>
</div>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:13px; text-align: center; color: #666666; padding:4px; margin-bottom:2px;"></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<table style="font:13px Helvetica, sans-serif; border-radius:4px; -moz-border-radius:4px; -webkit-border-radius:4px; background-color:#fff; padding:8px; margin-bottom:6px; border:1px solid #adadad;" width="100%">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td><a href="https://www.psypost.org/prenatal-cannabis-exposure-linked-to-changes-in-brain-structure-and-connectivity/" style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing:-1px;margin:0;padding:0 0 2px;font-weight: bold;font-size: 19px;line-height: 20px;color:#222;">Prenatal cannabis exposure linked to changes in brain structure and connectivity</a>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align:left;color:#999;font-size:11px;font-weight:bold;line-height:15px;">Aug 3rd 2024, 12:00</div>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; color:#494949;text-align:justify;font-size:13px;">
<p><p>New research published in <em><a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s44220-024-00281-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nature Mental Health</a></em> sheds light on the relationship between prenatal cannabis exposure and mental health issues in early adolescence. The study found that prenatal cannabis exposure is associated with specific changes in brain structure and connectivity, particularly affecting areas related to attention.</p>
<p>With increasing societal acceptance and legalization of cannabis, its use during pregnancy has risen significantly, doubling from 2002 to 2017. Despite warnings from health agencies and professional organizations about potential risks, many pregnant women continue to use cannabis.</p>
<p>Previous studies have indicated adverse outcomes such as low birth weight and preterm birth, but the neurobiological mechanisms behind these effects and their long-term impacts on child development remain unclear. This study aimed to explore whether prenatal cannabis exposure is associated with specific brain changes and mental health outcomes in adolescents.</p>
<p>“Cannabis use is becoming increasingly common in women who are pregnant (<a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2736582" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rates doubled</a> between 2002 and 2017),” explained study author <a href="https://davidbaranger.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">David Baranger</a>, a postdoctoral research associate at Washington University at St. Louis. “Despite the wide use of cannabis use, and its legalization in many of the states in the United States, we actually know very little about how cannabis use during pregnancy might impact the child. In our prior work, we showed that prenatal cannabis exposure was associated with worse child mental health <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2770964" target="_blank" rel="noopener">during childhood</a> and <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/fullarticle/2795863" target="_blank" rel="noopener">early adolescence</a>.”</p>
<p>“But, of course, these are just correlational findings, and in general it’s quite hard to establish whether cannabis could be having a <em>causal</em> effect on children, because there are so many plausible alternative explanations that are hard to rule out (for example, effects of family history or family environment). Our thought here was that if there is a causal effect of prenatal cannabis on mental health, then we might also expect to see effects on the brain.”</p>
<p>The researchers utilized data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, a large-scale, longitudinal study tracking the brain development and health of over 12,000 children across the United States. These children underwent various neuroimaging procedures, including structural MRI, diffusion MRI, and resting-state functional MRI. These scans provided detailed images of the brain’s structure, white matter integrity, and connectivity patterns.</p>
<p>The study measured prenatal cannabis exposure through retrospective reports from parents, distinguishing between exposure before and after the mother knew she was pregnant. Among the participants, 370 children were exposed to cannabis before the mother knew of the pregnancy, and 195 were exposed both before and after the mother became aware of the pregnancy. Mental health outcomes in the children were assessed using the Child Behavior Checklist, a widely used questionnaire where parents report various behavioral and emotional problems their children exhibited over the past six months.</p>
<p>The researchers discovered that prenatal cannabis exposure was associated with specific and localized alterations in brain structure and connectivity in adolescents. These changes were particularly evident in the gray and white matter of the frontal and parietal cortices, as well as in the striatum’s resting-state connectivity.</p>
<p>The gray matter consists of neuronal cell bodies and is crucial for processing information, while white matter contains nerve fibers that facilitate communication between different brain regions. The frontal cortex is involved in executive functions such as decision-making, problem-solving, and controlling behavior, whereas the parietal cortex plays a key role in processing sensory information and spatial awareness. The striatum is important for coordinating various aspects of cognition, including attention and reward processing.</p>
<p>The observed changes in these areas suggest that prenatal cannabis exposure may disrupt the neural circuits that underlie critical cognitive functions, potentially leading to attention problems and other related issues as the child grows.</p>
<p>One of the key findings was that prenatal cannabis exposure was specifically associated with attention problems in early adolescence. This association remained significant even after controlling for potential confounding factors, including family history of mental health issues, prenatal exposure to other substances, and various demographic variables.</p>
<p>“Perhaps one surprising thing was that even though prenatal cannabis use is associated with worse child mental health across the board, the associations we saw with the brain were fairly specific to attention problems and ADHD,” Baranger told PsyPost. This suggests that some of the associations we previously saw actually are attributable to those alternative explanations I mentioned earlier, and that prenatal cannabis exposure might have causal effects on a narrower range of mental health problems than we previously thought.”</p>
<p>The research also highlighted the importance of the timing of cannabis exposure during pregnancy. Children exposed to cannabis both before and after their mothers knew of the pregnancy exhibited stronger associations with the brain metrics analyzed. This suggests that the developmental timing of exposure plays an important role.</p>
<p>“This study adds some evidence indicating that it is plausible that cannabis use during pregnancy might have some small adverse mental health consequences for children,” Baranger said.</p>
<p>But the study, like all research, includes some caveats. The primary limitation is its observational nature, which prevents definitive conclusions about causality. Additionally, the data on prenatal cannabis exposure relied on retrospective self-reports from parents, which could be subject to recall bias. The study also lacked detailed information on the frequency, quantity, and form of cannabis used during pregnancy. Furthermore, the sample size of children exposed to cannabis prenatally was relatively small.</p>
<p>“We can’t rule out that these results might be due to confounding from a variable we were unable to measure,” Baranger said. However, he noted that “new studies are coming out that have much more detailed assessments of pregnancy and parent’s behavior during the pregnancy (see, for example, <a href="https://heal.nih.gov/research/infants-and-children/healthy-brain" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the HEALthy Brain and Child Development Study</a>). This is going to allow us to probe these questions with much greater detail and will also allow us to ask when brain effects first arise, which will help point to the mechanisms that could be mediating the effects of prenatal cannabis exposure.”</p>
<p>“One main thing to keep in mind about this kind of work is that the effects we are talking about are terribly small,” Baranger added. “They help us to study what is happening, but we don’t have enough data to say anything about what the effects of prenatal cannabis exposure are on the individual level.”</p>
<p>The study, “<a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s44220-024-00281-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Prenatal cannabis exposure, the brain, and psychopathology during early adolescence</a>“, was authored by David A. A. Baranger, Alex P. Miller, Aaron J. Gorelik, Sarah E. Paul, Alexander S. Hatoum, Emma C. Johnson, Sarah M. C. Colbert, Christopher D. Smyser, Cynthia E. Rogers, Janine D. Bijsterbosch, Arpana Agrawal, and Ryan Bogdan.</p></p>
</div>
<div style="font-family:Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size:13px; text-align: center; color: #666666; padding:4px; margin-bottom:2px;"></div>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><strong>Forwarded by:<br />
Michael Reeder LCPC<br />
Baltimore, MD</strong></p>
<p><strong>This information is taken from free public RSS feeds published by each organization for the purpose of public distribution. Readers are linked back to the article content on each organization's website. This email is an unaffiliated unofficial redistribution of this freely provided content from the publishers. </strong></p>
<p> </p>
<p><s><small><a href="#" style="color:#ffffff;"><a href="https://blogtrottr.com/unsubscribe/565/DY9DKf">unsubscribe from this feed</a></a></small></s></p>