Your Cannabis Questions, Answered: Is it addictive? - Described video

Transcript

Transcript - Your Cannabis Questions, Answered: Is it addictive? - Described video

Video description: Individual Canadians ask a panel of experts cannabis questions.

Canadian: I was wondering if marijuana is addictive?

Text on screen: Canadians have questions about cannabis.

Is cannabis addictive?

Dr. Oyedeji Ayonrinde, Associate Professor, Psychiatry: The risks of becoming addicted to cannabis will depend on your age. So in a younger person dependent on cannabis, it could affect education, going to school, relationship with friends and family, and major developmental years.

Dr. Amy Porath, Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction: One of them is tolerance, so feeling the need to take greater amounts of cannabis to feel the euphoric feelings that you usually feel. So there are definitely mental as well as physical symptoms associated with a cannabis addiction.

Dr. Didier Jutras-Aswad, Psychiatrist: One out of eleven people actually become dependent or abuse that substance. There are a number of characteristics of being addicted. For example, people will start losing control over the substance use, using more than they want, not being able to stop the substance. And overall basically just a lack or a difficulty to really stop using and keeping control over their substance use.

Dr. Oyedeji Ayonrinde, Associate Professor, Psychiatry: Now when we are addicted to cannabis we may spend a lot of time using it, seeking it, buying it. So, dependence on cannabis and different stages of life can have different effects.

Text on screen: Your cannabis questions, answered.

A message from the Government of Canada.