Written By: Samantha B. Hutto
At the beginning of 2016, there were four
states that had legalized recreational cannabis and twenty-three that allowed
the sale of marijuana for medical use. According to Web MD, medical marijuana
can help with multiple ailments including Crohn's disease, seizer disorders, poor
appetite, and weight loss caused by chronic illness, such as HIV, or nerve
pain. The advancement of this new found industry continues to snowball and the
world is finally going green, only in a different way than expected and with a
lot of snags along the way that make it necessary for us to re evaluate how cannabis
is viewed as a medicine. There has been a constant increase in use among 18-25 year
olds, childbearing
age, which leads us to the question of our female users and the effects it can
have on pregnancy. Is it safe for women to use and how does it compete with widely
used prescriptions?
No one has more eyes on them then the
baby baring mother. The one who is to treat her body as a temple and do only
what is best for this being growing inside of them, one that is dependent on
her every move. Pregnant women all over the world are
turning to cannabis to ease their “morning sickness” and suppress it enough to
eat while helping to relieve other aches, stresses, and anxieties. At the same
time, they face the whiplash of public opinion that continues to push her back
in the darkness. She must juggle the social stigma and well being of herself
and her child.
Even with the lack of research and the
social stigma attached to it, women from all over the world are sharing their
thoughts and experiences of using cannabis during pregnancy publicly for
everyone to hear. A shift in public opinion is
happening. The common response to many of the articles relating to this issue
seem to be that most people want to see the decision left up to the mother and
not based on unproven statistics. We us the words, maybe, possibly,
potentially; No one really knows what the effects will be and shouldn’t forget
the effects of currently prescribed medications.
What do women have to say?
Amongst the countless articles and
threads of post responses, one would find many from mothers themselves giving
their opinions and first hand experiences such as Kathryn, who say’s “If it were not for cannabis while pregnant I
would've lost it all. I was sick throwing up for the first 7 1/2 months. I lost
30+ pounds. Cannabis allowed me to eat enough for the baby before I'd get sick.
She was and still is a very beautiful intelligent baby, now woman. Born 7lbs
3oz, 19" long and lifting her head in recovery to just look around.
Shocked the nurses helping me. I did everything au natural. She is perfect in
every way!” Sky, mother of 3, responded to an
article titled Cannabis and Pregnancy: A
Mater of Choice by stating “I had 24/7 morning sickness. I lost 40 lbs.
each of the three times I was pregnant. During my pregnancies. Then I smoked
weed, I ate, I didn't throw up, stopped losing weight. My Dr. said it saved me
and my kids life since I had been starving and dehydrated before I started
smoking. I have grown children now, who are all gifted and have high IQs.
They're healthy, one even has given me two healthy grandchildren. Yeah, weed is
bad my ass. Saved me and my kids thank you!”
As far as those who
have anything bad to say tend to be stuck on the issue of literally “smoking”
cannabis and the dangers of carbon monoxide intake. Opinions may very well
shift with our advancements in technology take the smoke out of cannabis use. Cannabis use has and will for a while
longer be stereotyped as sitting on your couch, in a smoke filled room, hitting
a bong. Advancements in extraction technologies has brought the public new ways
of consuming or absorbing their cannabis product of choice. Tinctures, oils,
lotions, edibles, vaporizers, and suppositories are amongst the many alternatives.
You could eat a cookie, drink a tea, or spread it on toast. You can rub it on
your skin or soak in it. I believe the
alternative ways of medicating yourself and the understanding of whole plant
medicine is the key to changing the bad perception of pregnant women utilizing
cannabis during pregnancy.
What do the studies show for using cannabis while pregnant? Each study has come up with their own conclusions causing a clash of information making it difficult for the public to really form an opinion. There is now more of a demand for an answer because of the widespread use and new acceptance sweeping the nation.
What do the studies show for using cannabis while pregnant? Each study has come up with their own conclusions causing a clash of information making it difficult for the public to really form an opinion. There is now more of a demand for an answer because of the widespread use and new acceptance sweeping the nation.
Cannabis is not a super drug, or a magic
pill. It is a complex plant that can be grown at varying rates of THC and CBD
and customized to the needs of the patient. Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is
the psychoactive component of the cannabis plant while Cannabinol, or
CBD is said to provide the healing qualities that so many people are stammering
to get their hands on but will not provide you with the “high”. The lack of
psychoactive reactions makes it ideal for those looking to utilize the healing
power of the cannabis plant while staying right in the head. Each person differs chemically and therefore
will react differently to varying amounts. This is what makes whole plant
medicine and research so important. Society can not continue to place cannabis
under the “Stoner umbrella”, that everyone is doing it to get high. Well, you
now know that at different levels it can actually be more therapeutic than
psychoactive.
What The Studies Say
In 2011, an Australian study of 24,874, women who provided information
about cannabis use were included in the analysis. Initially, all the women
would be interviewed about their use of cannabis and other substances. These
women were all birthing at the Mater Mothers’ Hospital in Brisbane, Australia,
over a 7year period from 2000 to 2006. The result showed that cannabis use in pregnancy was associated with low
birth weight, confidence interval, preterm labor, being small for gestational
age, and a higher change of admission to the neonatal intensive care unit.
Another study done in the 1980’s was that
where they analyzed 12,424 women and their children to evaluate the
relationship between marijuana usage and pregnancy concerns. The conclusion of
their study is that the use of cannabis can raise the chances that your child
is born with low birth weight, short gestation, and major malformations. Not
that it causes it. With this study, and many others, they will find themselves
needing more information and data to support their claims that there is a link
between cannabis and major malformations.
This also leads to the fact that most
women using marijuana are also users of tobacco, alcohol, or other drugs.
Making it difficult to point the blame at one substance. Although there
have been studies dating back to the 1960’s regarding cannabis use during
pregnancy, there can be many variables that can alter the results such as women not fully or at all disclosing all the information needed to consider inregards to their drug use. The fact that there are still so many
variables that could sway these results makes it difficult to take their
results as one and done. One must argue that they are not true experiments of
cannabis but cannabis in conjunction with other substances.
Due to
ethical obligation researchers can not necessarily expose pregnant women to
something “potentially” dangerous but it is possible to do small studies based
on volunteers. The Colorado Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute(CCTSI), at the University of Colorado Denver, was recently awarded a Child andMaternal Health Pilot Grant to Torri Metz, MD, so she could study the detection
of prenatal marijuana use in a legalized environment. Metz also believes that
there is not enough to say cannabis use is bad and states “If you look at the
literature now, you find very mixed results”. Metz and colleagues will develop
a survey for mothers to self-report their use of marijuana. They will also take
a sample of their umbilical cord blood when they deliver their baby to
determine if the subject did indeed use marijuana through pregnancy, and to
what extent. As a result, researchers will be able to see if the self-report
agrees with the umbilical cord sample. This allows the researchers to determine
the best way to garner information about marijuana use during pregnancy for
future studies.
Despite what direction you choose, according
to Womenshealth.gov, When deciding whether or not to use a medicine during
pregnancy, you and your doctor need to discuss the medicine's benefits and
risks. There may be times during pregnancy when using medicine is a choice.
Carrying a child alters the decisions you may make when you are not pregnant,
such as holding out and fighting through a cold instead of taking something to
suppress and cure it. Small colds can be
much more damaging to your unborn child than on your own adult body. On the
other hand, this medicine may be needed despite your personal choice.
Sometimes, women need medicine for a few days to a couple of weeks to treat a
problem like a bladder infection or strep throat. Other women need to use
medicine every day to control long-term health problems like asthma, diabetes,
depression, or seizures. These problems might also include severe nausea and
vomiting, earlier pregnancy losses, or preterm labor.
Prescribed Drugs and Their Effects
If you become pregnant and begin
experiencing issues, such as morning sickness, the first thing most of us do
these days is get on good ol’ Google. Many women will naturally be concerned
with any types of medicines but especially nausea medications. Most likely they
will come across the drug Thalidomide, which was used to treat morning sickness
in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Thalidomide's tragic history led to the
strengthening of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the
development of regulations regarding medication use during pregnancy. Most
women will attempt to deal with these symptoms with little treatment, but ten
to fifteen percent eventually will require medication because they face more
serious complications such as dehydration or weight loss.
Metoclopramide, sold under the brand name
Reglan, is one of the most commonly used prescription medications for treatingchemotherapy patient’s nausea but can be used during pregnancy, if other
therapies have failed. The key words here are “if other therapies have failed”
would those therapies include cannabis? Is it a matter of the lessor or both
evils?
In a study, done in Denmark from 1997 to2011, researchers reviewed over 1.2 million pregnancies including 28,486 infants
who were exposed to metoclopramide in the first trimester and another 113,698
who were not and found no association between the drug and major malformations.
The study also found no increased risk of miscarriage, stillbirth, preterm
birth, low birth weight or fetal growth restriction. Although the outcome seems promising, just
as with cannabis, metoclopramide’s studies are still done on such a small scale
that given the low rate of issues, there is no way of telling without continued
research and large test groups.
Women are nearly twice as likely as men to be diagnosed with depression. Between 14-23% of women will struggle with
some symptoms of depression during pregnancy. Dramatic hormonal changes
occur during pregnancy, and these can affect mood. Mood disorders arebiological illnesses that involve changes in brain chemistry, which aredirectly related to depression and anxiety.
Many things can play a role in increased depression during pregnancy including
an unwanted pregnancy or lack of support. Women with depression usually experience some symptoms such as persistent
sadness, sleeping too much or not enough, recurring thoughts of death, suicide,
or hopelessness, Anxiety, or they may see a change in eating habits.
All of these symptoms can pose a
potential risk to your child if they are not treated. Untreated depression can
lead to poor nutrition, drinking/smoking, and suicidal behavior, which can then
cause premature birth, low birth weight, and developmental problems. Awoman who is depressed often does not have the strength or desire toadequately care for herself or her developing baby.
Women taking an anti depressant will most likely be urged to be weaned off the
drug by the third trimester in order to keep their babies from “withdrawal”
symptoms such as breathing problems, jitteriness, irritability, trouble
feeding, or hypoglycemia. The downside to this is that taking a women off ofher medication could result in the depression returning and potentially causingdamage to the mother and baby.
What are these women to do without the
medication needed to subdue their anxiety or depression? They must keep
themselves safe from the risks that come with being taken off of the medication
that allows them to live a healthy life for themselves and their child. I don’t
think it is a matter of one over the other. It is a matter of using what works
best based on the individual. Weighing out the pros and cons of everything you
put into your body should be a ritual. It doesn’t mean you have to make the
“right” choice. It just means that the a total view should be taken into
consideration before coming to a conclusion or spreading our unproven opinions.
Why I Chose To Discuss This Topic
I am forming my opinion solely on the
fact that I have experienced violent bouts of vomiting and have found relief in
cannabis. I have not experienced being
pregnant nor giving birth. I do however face an issue that causes me to be
nauseous and go through 12 hour periods of non stop vomiting, unable to keep
even the smallest amount of water down. The second time I experienced this, I
went to my doctor who would tell me nothing was wrong. I was given the same drug used by
chemotherapy patients to suppress their nausea throughout treatment. I would
take anything at this point. I put that little pill under my tongue and waited
for it to dissolve. All I wanted was a drink of water! The vomiting would
continue and I lost faith in that little pill. I never found more relief than in
that little joint or in an infused treat. Vomiting and not being able to eat or
drink anything has to be one of the worst feelings in the world. If cannabis
can help me eat without damaging me elsewhere, I am willing to do it. But I do
not have another being growing inside of me. And what if I did?
Cannabis as a medicine will never be
forced upon someone but it should never be denied. Especially, as a substitute to
drugs that can cause withdrawal in both the mother and child. Results from
current research can be looked at all day long but ultimately the mother is who
should have the right to decide what she does and does not consume. Continued research will lead the way to the ultimate
answer.
Image 1: Received from http://www.sheknow.comImage 2: Received from http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1901482,00.html
Image 3: Received from http://cannador.com/cannabis-storage-box/