New research appearing in the journal Addiction supports the growing evidence that Cannabis can seriously damage mental health.

Cannabis is thought by many to be a harmless recreational drug and is used regularly by people of all ages although research over many years has shown that people who use Cannabis regularly are more likely to suffer from schizophrenia.

David Fergusson and colleagues from University of Otago, in New Zealand, used data gathered across the course of a 25 year study of over 1,000 New Zealanders born in 1977.

There was a clear increase in rates of psychotic symptoms after regular use, with daily users of Cannabis having rates that were over 150% those of non users.

These findings add to a growing body of evidence from different sources, all of which suggest that heavy use of Cannabis may lead to increased risks of psychotic symptoms and illness in susceptible individuals.

Source : Addiction, 2005

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