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Weed’s Last Taboo: Pregnancy

Modern motherhood is a marvel and a minefield. An obstacle course of risk-reward calculations for which we will be judged. And pregnancy serves a sort of boot camp, with every decision feeling more monumental than the last, as a legion of friends, family, caregivers, influencers, and experts (real and imagined) readily dispense opinions on all of it.

Sushi. Unpasteurized cheese. Cold cuts. Cardio. Retinol. Highlights. Gardening. Wine.

Weed?

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Featured

 Marijuana during pregnancy might be as dangerous as alcohol

But there’s still a lot we don’t know.

Articles of Interest

A Balm When You’re Expecting: Sometimes Pot Does the Trick

The New York Times reported this month that expectant mothers are taking up marijuana in increasing numbers. We asked women who used marijuana during pregnancy to share their stories.

As more states legalize marijuana, pregnant women and their doctors grapple with how to talk about it

Obstetricians say it’s critical that providers start asking women explicitly about marijuana use in pregnancy, because many women don’t consider marijuana a drug and won’t disclose using it when a provider asks broadly about drug use or smoking.

Breast-Feeding Mothers Should Avoid Marijuana, Pediatricians Say

Marijuana is more widely available than ever, but what does it do to babies? There’s no answer to that yet, but nursing mothers are being warned to avoid it: Traces of the drug can show up in breast milk, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana that gets people high, can be detected in breast milk up to six days after use of the drug, according to a study published on Monday by the journal Pediatrics.

Cannabis Use in Pregnancy May Lead to a More Anxious, Aggressive Child

A new study adds to a growing body of evidence that indicates prenatal marijuana use can impact children’s development and behavior.

In rats, cannabis during pregnancy rewires the brains of offspring

Human mothers take note.

Is Smoking Weed While Pregnant Really So Bad?

Medical marijuana use carries less stigma, unless you're pregnant.

Marijuana and pregnancy: There’s no evidence that exposure is safe

Pregnant women should be advised about the potential negative effects of cannabis use and offered support to reduce or stop use wherever possible.

Marijuana for Moms

In states where weed is legal, new mild cannabis products are catching on with parents.

Marijuana Use During Pregnancy: Here's How Much It Has Risen

Just because it's legal (or becoming legal), doesn't mean that you should do it during pregnancy. This applies to eating raw shellfish and soft cheeses, rubbing used kitty litter on your face, and smoking pot. But a study just published in JAMA found that marijuana use among pregnant women in Kaiser Permanente Northern California has been rising substantially.

More pregnant women are using marijuana. We don’t know if that’s safe

And cannabis dispensaries are marketing their products to pregnant women for morning sickness.

New Evidence on Pot During Pregnancy

An unusually good study examines how marijuana use in pregnancy may affect birth outcomes.

Pot And Pregnancy: No Harm Seen At Birth, But Many Questions Remain

Between 2 percent and 5 percent of women say they use marijuana while pregnant, according to the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology. And while harm to the fetus is certainly plausible since the drug crosses the placenta, the evidence has been spotty.

Pregnant women in the US are giving up major vices—except one

New research has shown that while women in the US have cut back on alcohol and cigarette use during pregnancy in recent years, they have increasingly shifted to another vice—cannabis.

Some Pregnant Women Use Weed For Morning Sickness But FDA Cautions Against It

Still the research points to some serious concerns. While early studies linking cannabis use to preterm birth and low birth weight weren't conclusive, more recent work has shown a link. The early studies had certain confounding factors, explains Daniel Corsi, an epidemiologist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. The women who used cannabis during pregnancy, also tended to be younger and used substances like tobacco, alcohol and other drugs, all of which can cause adverse birth outcomes.

Study links cannabis use during pregnancy to autism risk

Research suggests 50% greater risk for children whose mothers report using cannabis

Using Cannabis While Pregnant Does Not Impair Children’s Cognition, Decades Of Studies Suggest

Across the US, children and their parents routinely face separation and other forms of punishment due to legal and medical policies around prenatal cannabis exposure, and the notion that cannabis use during pregnancy may harm children’s development. But according to a review of research to date, there’s no evidence to support this belief about cannabis, nor the inarguably harmful policies which rely on it.

Resources

ACOG

If you use marijuana during pregnancy, you may be putting your health and your fetus’s health at risk.

CDC

Although more research is needed to better understand how marijuana may affect you and your baby during pregnancy, it is recommended that pregnant persons do not use marijuana.

Using cannabis during pregnancy could be bad news for your baby: new research

The link between using cannabis during pregnancy and poorer neonatal outcomes could be related to the toxic compounds, such as carbon monoxide, produced when cannabis is smoked. This is similar to what we see with cigarette smoking and leads to a lower amount of oxygen reaching the baby. Or it could be a direct effect of the compounds found in cannabis which we know can cross the placenta and reach the baby.