It’s well-known smoking cigarettes during pregnancy can increase the risk of harm to the baby and is best avoided.
But in our research, published today in the Medical Journal of Australia, we show using cannabis during pregnancy is also associated with poorer outcomes for babies.
Are pregnant women using cannabis?
While we don’t have data on how common cannabis use is during pregnancy, results from the 2016 Australian National Drug Strategy Household Survey showed 10 per cent to 20 per cent of women of reproductive age had used cannabis during the preceding 12 months. Recent literature from overseas shows the number of women who become pregnant while using cannabis increased by as much as double from 2002 to 2017.
This is likely driven in large part by the legalization of cannabis in many parts of the world. In turn, increasing social and medical acceptance of its use has led to an overall perception cannabis is a safe drug.
In places where cannabis is legal, cannabis dispensaries sometimes promote it for the treatment of nausea and vomiting in pregnancy. But there are no studies evaluating whether it’s effective in this context, let alone whether it’s safe.
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