volkow. you're recognized for your five minutes of testimony and again thank you not only for your work but for being here with us today. turn your microphone on. that's right. >> i want to say good morning to everybody and i want to thank chairman eshoo, and burgess. cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in the world and the united states. thc is the reason. and it content has tripled in the past two decades. on the other hand, the content of cbd which is not requiring or of interest because of the potential therapeutic effects has decreased in cannabis plants while food, drinks, and other products containing it have proliferated it. thc exerts its effects by interacting with cannabid oil resente resenters. the system is involved in brain development and multiple brain functions. memory, emotions and others. hormonal pross in our bodies. thus it is not surprising that cannabids can negatively effect health. of particular concern are its effects on the developing fetal and adolescent

volkow first. are you familiar with the most e recent article that came out ofr the lancetenia psychiatry about use of drug-induced psychosis converting to full schizophrenia? >> yes, correct. >> can you comment -- i got thet statutes up. can you tell me -- i mean, summarize that report and maybe comment on your observations of that. >> this report is consistent with a concern that the use of marijuana, particularly high cn thc, can produce chronic psychosis. overall, the statement, as i have made, is that most cases are of the use of marijuana trigger an acute psychosis that by itself will go away, and what this does is shows those individuals that went into an emergency department for an psychotic episodes associated with the use of cannabis were much more likely to subs subsequently go into psychos psychosis. it provides evidence that it increases your risk of transitioning into a chronic psychotic episode as is the case with schizophrenia. >> thank you. let me -- i've been -- mental illness, me

volkow. you're recognized for your five minutes of testimony. and, again, thank you not only for your work, but for being with us here today. turn your microphone on. that's all right. >> i want to say good morning to everybody and i want to thank chairman eshoo, ranking member burgess and the members of this committee for inviting us to this hearing on cannabis research. cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in the world and the united states. thc is the reason. and it content has tripled in the past two decades. on the other hand, the content of can body oil or cbd which is not requiring or of interest because of potential therapeutic effects has decreased in cannabis plants while food, drinks, and other products containing it have proliferated it. thc exerts its effects by interacting with cannabid receptors, which is part of our own system. the system is involved in brain development and multiple brain functions. memory, emotions, reward, among others. cannabinoid receptors also m

doctor volkow, ensuring access to mental health services is a top priority of mine. unfortunately montana has the highest suicide rate in the country. i have introduced the national suicide hotline designation act which makes 988 the national suicide hotline number. this important bill will protect emergency access in rural areas who lack access to mental health professional. in your testimony you state mental illness and suicide in the country and multiple factors very likely to understand of exposure to cannabis in adolescence is one of them. can research draw connection between marijuana use and increased risk for suicide or mental health problems? >> there have been larger studies that have noted increased read for suicide among regular users of thc but the evidence is not at his extensive as psychosis so we cannot ignore it but we need to determine if it is reproducible and understand the extent. something that has been noted by larger epidemiological studies. >> from your experience in this area do we understand the connection between marijuana and mental healt