Australian scientists are warning middle-aged fathers it's not safe to share a joint with their teenage sons, after publishing the strongest evidence yet that cannabis use brings forward the onset of schizophrenia symptoms by nearly three years.
The first super-study to combine the results of more than 80 previous research projects, together involving more than 20,000 patients with schizophrenia, found those who used cannabis experienced their first symptoms an average of 2.7 years earlier than others who avoided the drug.
Although the study does not prove that cannabis causes schizophrenia directly, lead author Matthew Large, of the University of NSW, said the findings were consistent with the theory that the drug at least induced earlier onset, and could cause up to 20 per cent of cases that would not have happened otherwise.
Dr Large, a senior lecturer in psychiatry and psychiatric specialist at Sydney's Prince of Wales Hospital, said earlier onset was a critical issue because schizophrenia's effects were far more devastating in the teenage years, when the brain was still developing. "Three years can make a big difference to the developmental milestones you can achieve -- you can complete your education, get a job and get your first partner," Dr Large said.
"A 45-year-old father could smoke cannabis and have a very low extra risk -- but a 15-year-old could have as much as five times the additional risk of developing schizophrenia."
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