The Journal of Neuroscience Research published a study this month that found regular cannabis users have a better understanding of other people’s emotions. According to the authors, these findings “highlight the positive effects of marijuana on interpersonal relationships and possible therapeutic applications.”
A team of neurobiologists from the National Autonomous University of Mexico compared the levels of empathy in a group of 85 regular marijuana users with 51 non-consumers using a 33 item test and MRI scans of the participants.
The written test is designed to assess the ability of a subject to empathize with others. It measures both cognative empathy and affective sympathy.
According to the study, “cannabis users scored higher on the Emotional comprehension scales”, or the tests that measure the ability of recognizing and understanding others’ emotions. The differences between cannabis users and those who don’t use it in the other subscales of empathy were not statistically significant.
Researchers say the results indicate a possible association between marijuana and empathy. However, they warn that more research is necessary to fully understand these interactions because “many other factors could be at work.”
The differences in psychometric scores indicate that users have a more empathic understanding.
The team of neuroscientists, in an attempt to explain their findings, noted that a particular part of the cortex, the anterior cingulate (ACC), “is a brain region that is prone for the effects of marijuana consumption, and is also heavily involved in empathy which is a complex process that can influence in various ways.”
The study states that “given that the ACC [cannabinoid receptors] is one of the most important areas in the brain that is involved in representing the affective state others,” “we believe the differences in emotional comprehension scores, and the functional connectivity of their brains, that are shown by regular cannabis consumers, could be linked to cannabis use.”
The authors cautioned that there are caveats. The authors noted that “we cannot dismiss that such differences existed before users began using cannabis,” acknowledging that the study was unable to prove that cannabis use caused a difference. The responses to the empathy questions were also self-reported, and did not rely on subjective reports or biochemical markers.
Participants in the Mexican study likely used marijuana with a lower THC content than the majority of products sold by state-legal retailers in America. The authors stated that the quality of the cannabis in Mexico was lower than the cannabis in the US. It contained between 2% and 20% of THC.
They noted that “these differences in THC levels between US and Mexican Cannabis” could have a different impact on functional brain results between the current study and those reports of emotional dysfunctions among cannabis users,” pointing out studies from 2009 to 2016.
The study concluded that despite the qualifications, “given prior studies of the effects of cannabis on mood, emotional detection and social interaction, we believe these results contribute to opening a path to further study the clinical applications of positive effect that cannabis, or cannabis components, could have.”
Researchers at the University of West Attica, Greece, found in another neuroscience study this year that medical cannabis use is associated with an improved quality of life, including better job performance and sleep, as well as increased energy, among people with neurological disorders.
A recent study by the American Medical Association concluded that medical cannabis was associated with “significant improvement” in quality-of-life among people suffering from chronic pain or insomnia, and these effects were “largely sustainable” over time.
Cannabis may increase the “runner’s High” feeling during exercise, and improve the practice of Yoga.
The post Marijuana users have more empathy and a greater understanding of other people’s emotions, study finds first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
