Health Literacy for Local Youth: The Dangers of Cannabis on the Developing Brain

• By School of Health Professions
• August 26, 2024
• Health

Recently, Assistant Professor in the Doctor of Occupational Therapy Program at TTUHSC, Molly Setliff OTR, OTD, and her son, an MS and biology teacher for a local high school, joined forces to improve the health literacy of freshman students regarding the dangers of ingesting THC. 

Molly has worked in occupational therapy for 30 years. Working primarily with adults during that time, she has always had a passion for working in cognitive and behavioral settings (i.e. dementia). Currently, when she’s not teaching at TTUHSC, she performs evaluations and provides coping strategies at an inpatient psychiatric hospital, working with people battling substance use disorders, Major Depressive Disorder, Schizophrenia, Bipolar disorder, etc. 

Her son specializes in immunology, microbiology, molecular biology,  and infection. While waiting to begin a new program at TTUHSC, he decided to teach at a local high school. After consulting his mom about the behaviors of some students, the two realized their audiences may have a similar root cause to what OT refers to as “missed behaviors,” meaning their behaviors are missing the mark.  

“While working at the hospital, I’ve noticed a very high percentage of people coming in with Cannabis Use Disorder,” said Molly. “My son would tell me some of the behaviors he was seeing in students, and it sounded a lot like the behaviors I was seeing … so, I wondered if maybe there was a correlation … if maybe these students were using cannabis.”

Molly described the behavior as if the students didn’t have impulse control. They were nonresponsive, had a flat affect, struggling with depression and anxiety. So she started researching cannabis and why it is so dangerous for the developing brain. 

She found hundreds of studies documenting how dangerous THC/cannabis is for the brain, especially during the developmental years (ages 12-25). She became concerned that students are ingesting it under the illusion that it's okay, as medical marijuana (with a very small amount of THC) and the legalization of marijuana grow in popularity. 

“I think this is something that might be happening in all schools,” Molly said. “Kids just haven’t been taught what cannabis can do to their brain.”

So together, Molly and her son decided to put together a presentation, for her to talk through OT’s role of the psychosocial risks of ingesting cannabis, and for her son to talk about the neurobiology of what is going on in the brain on a cellular level when the substance is ingested and why is it so dangerous for the developing brain. 

“The presentation took us three days; we presented to every freshman at this local high school in small groups,” she said. “I know, as an occupational therapist, that you’re more impactful if you can speak to small groups, and I knew the students would disengage otherwise.”

The Risks

“Some of these kids were not ashamed to admit that they were ingesting THC,” Molly said.

What makes the use of THC so dangerous for this population is the neuroplasticity of their brains. Molly explains that when you're that age, your brain is changing and adapting. THC binds perfectly to certain receptors in the brain; therefore, it’s as if THC hijacks the receptors which in time causes the brain to remove the receptor, resulting in an influx of neurotransmitters. 

The brain will continue to adapt to control this overproduction of the neurotransmitters by removing the neuron completely (synaptic pruning) because your brain is going to adapt in an attempt to fix the problem and find balance (homeostasis). 

An excessive amount of dopamine is an example of the dangers of having too much of a neurotransmitter. The very definition of Schizophrenia is an overproduction of dopamine and a decrease in synapses. A dysregulation of neurotransmitters and synaptic pruning causes cognitive and behavioral deficits.

“Then, you don’t have the ability to process, so you don’t have impulse control, you don’t have good attention, you can’t remember things,” she continues. “All these are things you need a neural pathway for in order to be successful at school or work.”

Research shows that by consuming THC in developmental years, you are 9 times more likely to have Schizophrenia, 5 times more likely to have Bipolar disorder, and twice as likely to have depression or anxiety. Additionally, you are 10 times more likely to kill someone in a car accident while driving under the influence of THC, regardless of age.

The Impact

At the end of their presentation, Molly and her son did a poll to see if the students believed the science presented to them: 98% said yes. Students were then asked if they believe ingesting THC during developmental years is incredibly dangerous for their brain: 98% said yes. Finally, the last question students were asked was if they are willing to not use cannabis during their developmental years: 79% said yes. 

Molly and her son are scheduled to present at the Texas Occupational Therapy Association to increase awareness of the risks associated with ingesting THC during the developmental years to fellow OT professionals. 

Helpful Resources

For students:

Steps for Getting off Cannabis

Healthy Coping Strategies

For Parents:

A parent’s guide to preventing underage marijuana use

Talking to Youth About Marijuana: Tips for Parents