Two months pregnant, Renee walked in to a cannabis dispensary. She told the man at the counter that she was experiencing morning sickness and wanted something for her nausea. He suggested she purchase cannabis. He said it would cure her nausea. The “bud tender” had no medical background yet was dispersing a schedule 1 drug to a pregnant woman. While it may be legal, he had no idea of the potential harm involved.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reports that 16.2% of pregnant woman daily use marijuana. The rate of pregnant women using cannabis has doubled since 2009. One of the reasons is the lack of perceived harm, thinking this is a natural remedy. And  keep in mind, today’s cannabis is far more potent than cannabis of previous decades.

Here’s what the budtender didn’t know when he recommended cannabis to this pregnant woman: Cannabinoids cross the placenta and accumulate in the fetal brain and other organs. This interferes with neurodevelopment and the endocannabinoid system of the baby. And if a mom is using while breast feeding, the secretions into the breast milk from the cannabis can last for up to a week. Other studies have shown prenatal cannabis to be associated with maternal anemia, low birth weight of the baby, greater risk of preterm and stillbirths, and increase use of neonatal intensive care units.

In addition, two longitudinal studies indicate problems with children later in life as well. These include impulsivity, delinquency, learning and memory impairment, as well as executive functioning deficits. Furthermore, proneness to psychosis increases during middle childhood.

The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) released guidelines in 2018 to screen for cannabis use in pregnant and breastfeeding women. Once screened, the recommendation is to quit. The concern is for the neurodevelopment of the developing fetus. Despite what the bud tenders say, cannabis use during pregnancy is not safe.

Sources: Harkany T, Guzmán M, Galve-Roperh I, et al. The emerging functions of endocannabinoid signaling during CNS development. Trends Pharmacol Sci. 2007;28:83-92. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0165614706002872.

Gunn JK, Rosales CB, Center KE, et al. Prenatal exposure to cannabis and maternal and child health outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Open. 2016;6:e009986. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27048634.

Huizink AC, Mulder EJ. Maternal smoking, drinking or cannabis use during pregnancy and neurobehavioral and cognitive functioning in human offspring. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2006;30:24-41. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0149763405000953

Fine JD, Moreau AL, Karcher NR, et al. Association of Prenatal Cannabis Exposure With Psychosis Proneness Among Children in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study. JAMA Psychiatry. 2019;76:762-764. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30916716