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One of the newest studies on pot has determined that using high potency marijuana in the form of skunk like cannabis can cause brain damage to an area of the brain responsible for communication between the hemispheres. The study was performed as a partnership between Sapienza University of Rome and King’s College London researchers. The results of the study can be found in the Psychological Medicine journal and it is the first study which examined how cannabis potency can impact the structure of the brain. What researchers found was that stronger skunk like strains of pot can cause psychosis in some individuals, and that marijuana today may be much more potent than it was even a decade ago.

The study results on skunk like cannabis, high potency marijuana, and brain damage were explained by King’s College London Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience (IoPPN), Neurobiology of Psychosis researcher and senior study researcher Dr. Paola Dazzan “We found that frequent use of high potency cannabis significantly affects the structure of white matter fibers in the brain, whether you have psychosis or not. This reflects a sliding scale where the more cannabis you smoke and the higher the potency, the worse the damage will be.” Dazzan continued by saying “As we have suggested previously, when assessing cannabis use it is extremely important to gather information on how often and what type of cannabis is being used. These details can help quantify the risk of mental health problems and increase awareness on the type of damage these substances can do to the brain.”