PREGNANT POT SMOKING PROMOTED

Some people might be shocked at the idea of pregnant women smoking
marijuana to deal with the nausea that comes with pregnancy.

But a UK-based medical publication, Journal of Complementary Therapies
in Clinical Practice, has taken the idea seriously and published a
study conducted by the Vancouver Island Compassion Society on the topic.

The Victoria-based society, which provides medicinal marijuana to
people suffering from various illnesses, recently completed the study
that examines the therapeutic potential of medicinal cannabis for
nausea and vomiting associated with pregnancy. The study argues that
marijuana is an effective method to deal with nausea and vomiting with
pregnant women.

"It's an area that without a doubt is going to be a bit more
controversial as an area of research," said Phillipe Lucas, director
of the Vancouver Island Compassion Society.

Provincial Health Officer Dr. Perry Kendall said that marijuana likely
is an effective treatment for dealing with nausea and vomiting with
pregnant women.

"But I don't think I'd recommend smoking marijuana in pregnancy," he
said.

There are concerns among some in the medical profession that marijuana
could cause difficulty in terms of the development of the baby's
brain, Kendall said. As well, it's possible that a low birth weight
could result from a pregnant woman smoking the substances found in
marijuana leaves, he said.

"So I wouldn't recommend smoking anything during pregnancy," Kendall
said. Lucas conducted the research with B.C. Compassion Club Society
researcher Rielle Capler, University of B.C. professor Patricia A.
Janssen and University of Victoria sociologist Rachel Westfall.

The study was prompted by a request from Westfall who approached the
Vancouver Island Compassion Society to find out how she could gain
access to cannabis to conduct a study on how it might address nausea
with pregnant women, Lucas said.

"I knew right away that, that was simply going to be an
impossibility," he said.

There's no way, Lucas said, that the federal government would allow a
clinical trial on determining if marijuana could effectively treat
nausea and vomiting with pregnant women.

That said, Lucas decided to move forward with a survey/study to
determine if women who smoked marijuana while they were pregnant found
that it dealt with the nausea and vomiting.

The survey shows that 92 per cent of respondents considered marijuana
to be either "extremely effective" or "effective" as a therapy for
nausea and vomiting (or morning sickness).

The study also focused on a particularly severe form of nausea and
vomiting associated with pregnancy called hyperenesisgragidarum.

"It's characterized as extremely severe nausea that affects two per
cent of women who go through pregnancy," Lucas said.

As it currently stands, there aren't any effective pharmaceutical
treatments available to treat that condition, he said.

The study also focused on how effective marijuana is in treating
nausea in general. The vast majority of respondents indicated that
marijuana is an effective therapy for nausea (93 per cent), vomiting
(75 per cent) and as an appetite stimulant (95 per cent).

At the same time, the suggestion that marijuana is an effective
treatment for nausea is apparent from talking to clients at the
Vancouver Island Compassion Society, Lucas said.

"It's something that we see everyday."