cannabisnews.com: Pot Smoking Can Impair Driving Ability! Pot Smoking Can Impair Driving Ability! Posted by FoM on July 08, 1999 at 11:59:36 PT Source: Fox News NEW YORK, — Driving and marijuana use could be a dangerous combination, according to European researchers. "Perceptual motor speed and accuracy, two very important parameters of driving ability, seem to be impaired immediately after cannabis consumption,'' conclude Dr. Ilse Kurtzhaler and colleagues at Innsbruck University Clinics, in Innsbruck, Austria. Their findings were published in the June issue of the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. While the detrimental effects of alcohol on driving ability are well known, "definitive answers'' regarding driving and marijuana use have remained elusive, according to the authors. To help resolve this issue, they performed a series of physical and psychological tests on 60 healthy volunteers who were asked to smoke regular cigarettes or cigarettes containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active agent in marijuana. The investigators found that, compared with subjects who smoked regular cigarettes, "the THC group exhibited a significantly higher impairment of cognitive (intellectual) function'' after smoking the drug. Specifically, the THC group saw their intellectual function decline in two main areas — 'perceptual motor speed' and 'accuracy.' Impairment in perceptual motor speed means that a driver misjudges speed, for example, thinking he is driving 50 miles per hour when in fact his speed is much faster. Driving accuracy refers to the driver's ability to respond quickly and effectively to new, potentially dangerous driving events. THC smokers also had trouble remembering experiences from psychological tests run the previous day, according to the researchers. This suggests that "a driver under acute cannabis influence would not be able to use acquired knowledge from earlier experiences adequately to ensure road safety,'' they explain. Based on these findings, Kurzthaler's team speculate that roadside tests aimed at detecting marijuana use could become standard practice in the not-too-distant future. In an interview with Reuters Health, Dr. Jag Khalsa of the National Institute of Drug Abuse in Bethesda, Maryland, called the Austrian research one of the first "well-controlled'' studies on the issue, conducted in a "scientific manner.'' Still, he believes that more research is needed before US legislators, health authorities and law-enforcement officials make any move towards mandating THC checks for American drivers. In any case, he said, "I don't think we have a sound (testing) technology yet.'' 1:10 p.m. ET (1715 GMT) July 8, 1999Jul 08 (Reuters Health) SOURCE: Journal of Clinical Psychiatry 1999;60:395-399. comments newsdigital.com© 1999, News America Digital Publishing, Inc.d/b/a Fox News Online.All rights reserved.© Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved Fox News is a registered trademark of 20th Century Fox Film Corp. Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #9 posted by observer on August 24, 2001 at 21:10:15 PT re: dui stop smoking potAny response to the studies? by the way, here is something that law enforcement personnel will find interesting:The War the Police Didn't Declare and Can't Win By Joseph D. McNamara (retired deputy inspector of the New York City Police Department, and former police chief of Kansas City, MO. And San Jose, CA.)http://www.cato.org/realaudio/drugwar/papers/mcnamara.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by cop on August 24, 2001 at 20:08:19 PT dui stop smoking pot [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by observer on April 08, 2001 at 19:38:43 PT re: pot in blood and urine Although the acute part of the cannabis inebriation last only a few hours, tell-tale metabolites of THC can be detected for weeks, months after use. Like vitamin E (et al.) THC is fat-soluble, so small amounts can get stored in fat then released in extremely tiny levels. Not detectable to the person who smoked, and until recently, not even detectable by science. But now, sensitive enough tests exist that can detect the broken-down THC metabolites that trickle out over the subsequent months. As far as the THC (and other related cannabis compounds) having an effect on behavior/driving, that's over after a few hours. (As far as testing goes, remember that the hair testing can read out most drugs used, and can go back for the length of the hair.)How does marijuana affect driving, you ask?seeCannabis/Driving StudiesUK: Cannabis May Make You A Safer Driver (2000) http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v00/n1161/a02.html University Of Toronto Study Shows Marijuana Not A Factor In Driving Accidents (1999)http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases\1999\03\990325110700.htm Australia: Cannabis Crash Risk Less: Study (1998) http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v98/n945/a08.html Australia: Study Goes to Pot (1998) http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v98/n947/a06.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by kathy on April 08, 2001 at 17:09:28 PT: pot in blood and urine How long does marijuana remain in urine and in the blood system? [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by observer on January 23, 2001 at 22:32:02 PT DUI Sorry to hear about this! NORML: Find a lawyerhttp://www.norml.org/legal/norml_lc.shtml [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by alias Niko on January 23, 2001 at 21:29:23 PT: DUI(had smoked before driving) I was recently convicted of a DUI, (only this was from smoking pot), I was pulled over and the officer smelled pot, he immediatly bullied my brother and I around and the next thing you know the officer arrested me and I was put in jail, now I have to appear in court and have no idea as to what the heck to do, pleas help me. If any of you guys have helpful tips of know of any good attourneys that would be helpful let me know, we were not aware of our rights and I was not even read my miranda rights until I was in the police office much later from when I was orignally cuffed, the officers user profane language with us and mocked us, in addition they were very unprofessional. [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by Dan Thompson on October 16, 2000 at 15:59:07 PT Pot Smoking Can Impair Driving Ability I would be interested to know if the test subjects who involved were experienced marijuana smokers or not. The first couple of times you smoke pot are much more disorienting than after you've been doing it awhile. Keeping this in mind how many people would smoke pot their first time and then jump behind the wheel [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by FoM on July 08, 1999 at 19:25:02 PT This Is My View! Rainbow,What I believe about driving impairment is that any mind altering substance could possibly cause a bad reaction time in a situation where you must react quickly and accurately. So it really doesn't surprise me that for instance depth perception could be off. Why don't they test people driving under the influence of some legal prescription drug like Tylenol with Codeine and see what happens! Peace, FoM!PS: I'm sure there's other drugs commonly used by people with prescriptions but I'm out of touch with modern medicine anymore. [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by rainbow on July 08, 1999 at 12:11:31 PT: testing I do not think we will ever have a testing program here in the US because "we" might find out the real truth.Anyway the flaw in the german study as read is the addition of THC only to the cigarrette and not taking into account the other things in MJ.Also I wonder how the THC interact with nicotine. I find that when I smoked my cognitive functions were affectted and quite possibly the nicotime and THC have an interaction effect.So much for scienceCheersRainbow [ Post Comment ] Post Comment Name: Optional Password: E-Mail: Subject: Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message] Link URL: Link Title: