Marijuana effects on neurobehavior of newborns

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The effects of marijuana on the developing fetus remain poorly defined, in part because of the complexity of human exposures and separating the effects of the marijuana from its contextual associations of use. Barros et al describe abnormalities in arousal, regulation, and arousability in term infants born to adolescent mothers in Brazil. They tried to control for the use of other drugs and factors that could contribute to the findings. In an editorial, Bada, Reynolds, and Hansen review the available information on marijuana exposure during human fetal development and point out just how difficult it is to separate marijuana from other variables in clinical studies. However, subtle effects could have large impact on populations because the exposure is so frequent.