There is a pervasive belief that using cannabis can make you lazy. But is there any truth to it? A new study from the University of British Columbia has set out to find an answer.<\/b><\/p>\n
Rats are industrious little creatures. Smart too. But when researchers at the <\/span>University of British Columbia<\/span><\/a> administered THC, something very curious happened – the rats became cognitively lazy.<\/span><\/p>\n In a study published in the <\/span>Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience<\/span><\/a>, it was found that consumption of THC (tetrahydrocannabinol, the main psychoactive ingredient of marijuana) resulted in lab rats becoming less willing to try cognitively demanding tasks. <\/span><\/p>\n Interestingly, it wasn\u2019t that they suddenly became unable to carry out the tasks; they just didn\u2019t want to.<\/span><\/p>\n As one of the study\u2019s authors, Mason Silveira, <\/span>said<\/span><\/a>, \u201cThere is also research pointing out that sometimes THC doesn\u2019t affect all your cognitive abilities across the board. What\u2019s interesting in our study is that it seems to primarily affect your ability to decide or choose whether you want to exert that cognitive ability.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n The study sought to understand the effects of THC and <\/span>CBD (cannabidiol)<\/span><\/a> on a rat\u2019s willingness to think about, and undertake, a task.<\/span><\/p>\n Twenty-nine rats were trained to perform in an experiment involving an easy challenge and a difficult challenge with the reward of a sugary treat on offer for successful completion of the task.<\/span><\/p>\n Usually, these rats would prefer to take on the more difficult challenge due to the fact that there was a bigger reward at the end of it. However, when they were given THC, their desire to take on the harder challenge diminished, and they switched their attention to the easier tasks, even though there was a smaller reward on offer.<\/span><\/p>\n The researchers then looked at the effect of CBD on the rats. CBD is, of course, an active ingredient in marijuana, and one of the most abundant, along with THC.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Researchers found that there was no adverse impact from CBD on the rats’ decision-making skills or attention span. However, they also observed that it did not block the negative effects of THC – something that it was previously thought to do.<\/span><\/p>\n The senior author of the study, and associate professor in UBC\u2019s psychology department, Catharine Winstanley, admitted that this was surprising to the researchers. It had been previously suggested that a high concentration of CBD could moderate or reduce the psychoactive effects of THC.<\/span><\/p>\n The outcome of the study has proven interesting due to the very simple fact that cognitive exertion is fundamentally crucial to success in all walks of life. The researchers were therefore keen to point out that diminished willingness to engage in difficult and challenging tasks is a concerning side effect of cannabis use.<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s probably worthwhile briefly outlining how the experiment worked as picturing rats choosing between an easy and a hard task is probably conjuring all sorts of Pixar-esque hijinks in your mind.<\/span><\/p>\n Essentially, the intrepid lab rats were presented with two levers from which to choose. By selecting a specific level, they were effectively signaling whether they wanted to take on the easy challenge or the hard one.<\/span><\/p>\n In the easy challenge, a light turned on for one full second. The rats would then detect the light and respond to it by poking it with their nose. After successfully completing this task, they would receive one sugar pellet as a reward for their endeavors.<\/span><\/p>\n The more challenging task resulted in the light being turned on for only 0.2 seconds. If the rats responded to the light with a nose poke, they received two sugar pellets for their sharp reactions and unwavering attention span.<\/span><\/p>\n If that vivid description still hasn\u2019t done the experiment justice, then you can watch it in action below:<\/span><\/p>\nWhat Did the Study Involve?<\/h2>\n
How Did the Experiment Work?<\/h2>\n