Cannabis and Cognitive Functioning

Nadia Solowij

Cambridge University Press, £50, pp 290

ISBN 0 521 59114 7

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People who have enjoyed using cannabis describe feelings of mild euphoria, pleasant alterations of perception, relaxation, and increased sociability. Others may experience anxiety, panic, or even psychotic reactions. Cannabis intoxication can produce measurable impairments in concentration and short term memory, difficulties in goal directed activity, slowed reaction times, and altered perceptions of the passage of time.

Despite public interest, and consequent generous research funding, evidence for persistent cognitive dysfunction has so far proved elusive. It …