14 DAY TRIAL // Recent investigations have revealed that marijuana users process emotions differently than those who stay clear of this drug do.
According to a paper published in the European Neuropsychopharmacology journal, this difference boils down to the fact that users aren't as affected by negative emotions and images as non-smokers are.
Researchers argue that, because of this, those who occasionally puff marijuana have a better mental health than others, Daily Mail tells us.
In their paper, the researchers detail that marijuana promotes mental health due to the fact that is contains noteworthy amounts of a chemical compound known to the scientific community as tetrahydrocannabinoid (THC, for short).
This chemical compound is the cannabis plant's main psychoactive constituent.
It is the one that gets people high, and apparently it is also quite “gifted” in terms of altering an individual's response to negative emotions and images they are exposed to.
Experiments carried out with the help of several volunteers have shown that people who consume marijuana and have THC in their systems have issues mimicking “fearful” facial expressions.
However, they have no difficulties copying “happy” facial expressions.
What's more, brain scans carried out as part of this investigation into how marijuana influences mental health have revealed that THC benefits brain areas that are in charge of processing emotions.
“THC administration reduces the negative bias in emotional processing,” the researchers reportedly write in their report.
Furthermore, “This adds human evidence to support the hypothesis that the endocannabinoid system is involved in modulation of emotional processing.”
The scientists argue that, in light of these findings, the medical community might want to look into the possibility of using marijuana to treat both depression and other similar mental illnesses.
This research is not the first to show that marijuana has a positive effect on the brain. Thus, it wasn't very long ago when one other team of scientists argued that, under certain circumstances, this drug could prevent trauma-induced brain damage.