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Marihuana

Acute Effects on Human Memory

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Marihuana and Medicine

Abstract

The single most consistently reported behavioral effect of cannabinoids in humans is an alteration in memory functioning (1). Interest in the effects of Cannabis on memory stemmed from anecdotal reports of the effects of Cannabis on mood and thinking. In 1845, the French psychiatrist de Tours Moreau (2) provided an elegant characterization of the effects of hashish on human mental functioning. Moreau stated that one of the more prominent effects of hashish was a “gradual weakening of the power to direct thoughts at will.” Ideas extraneous to the focus of an individual’s attention appeared to enter the mind producing a loosening of associations. Other early investigators such as Bromberg (3) and Ames (4) employing less potent Cannabis preparations than those used by Moreau and his followers also noted fragmentation of thought and confusion on attempting to remember recent occurrences.

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© 1999 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Miller, L.L. (1999). Marihuana. In: Nahas, G.G., Sutin, K.M., Harvey, D., Agurell, S., Pace, N., Cancro, R. (eds) Marihuana and Medicine. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59259-710-9_23

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-59259-710-9_23

  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, Totowa, NJ

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4757-5717-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-59259-710-9

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