A study published on February 3, 2025, by the University of Colorado Anschutz School of Medicine has revealed startling insights into how heavy cannabis use may impair working memory, a critical function for everyday tasks like decision-making and communication.
Led by Dr. Kent Hutchison, a renowned neuroscientist, the study analyzed brain scans of over 1,000 individuals aged 22-36. The findings show that 63% of heavy cannabis users exhibited significantly reduced brain activity in regions associated with working memory. Heavy use was defined as over 1,000 instances of cannabis consumption across a lifetime.
“These results should be a wake-up call,” stated Dr. Hutchison during a press briefing. “As cannabis use becomes more normalized, especially among young adults, we need to understand its potential long-term cognitive effects.”
The research, published in JAMA Network Open, comes at a time when cannabis legalization and use are surging globally. Health officials, including Dr. Nora Volkow, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), have expressed concern over these findings. “This study underscores the need for public awareness and policy discussions about the risks of heavy cannabis use, particularly for younger populations,” Dr. Volkow emphasized.
Further research is underway to explore whether working memory function can recover after stopping cannabis use, providing hope for users who wish to mitigate potential harm.