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THE PONCHATOULA TIMES, MAY 30, 2013, PAGE 8
By DR. RANDOLPH HOWES M.D., PhD
(EDITOR'S NOTE: Longtime medical columnist for The Ponchatoula Times, the
author is an accomplished surgeon, medical inventor, and Country music recording
artist. Dr. Howes grew up on his parents' Ponchatoula strawberry farm. He is a
graduate of St. Joseph, Ponchatoula High School, Tulane - two doctorates, followed
by a residency at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in plastic surgery. He says he is "re-
tired" now in Kentwood.)
It appears that the mood of the country is to increasingly le-
galize marijuana (cannabis) use. Eighteen states have legalized
cannabis.
The fact that the drug has
medical uses leads to the con-
clusion that it is harmless; but
all medications have side ef-
fects. So, we need to review the
relevant health considerations
of "smoking weed."
In 2013, Madeline H. Meier,
PhD, a Duke University inves-
tigator, said, "Our results sug-
gest that adolescents are par-
ticularly vulnerable to develop
cognitive impairment from
cannabis and that the drug, far
from being harmless, as many
teens and even adults are com-
ing to believe, can have severe
neurotoxic effects on the adoles-
cent brain."
In short, cannabis use in
teens was linked to an irrepara-
ble drop in IQ (intelligence quo-
tient). Persistent or prolonged
use led to a greater decline in
IQ. The study was prospective
and IQ testing was done at age
8, 11, and 13 years, before the
start of cannabis use, and again
at age 38, after a pattern of per-
sistent cannabis use had devel-
oped.
Curiously, persistent canna-
bis use was associated with an
IQ decline when it was begun
during the teenage years but
not when begun in the adult
years, after the age of 18.
Dr. Meier found, "Between
the ages of 8 and 38 years, indi-
viduals who began using canna-
bis in adolescence and continued
tO'use it for years thereafter lost
an average of 8 IQ points.
In contrast, IQ among indi-
viduals who never used canna-
bis actually rose slightly." Most
importantly, cessation of canna-
bis use (stopping weed smoking)
did not restore the IQ among
teen-onset cannabis users.
Meirer said, "I think teach-
ers, parents, health educators,
and pediatricians should all be
trying to get the message out
to adolescents that drugs, espe-
cially cannabis, are not harm-
less."
Drug dealers are producing
weed with a THC content of 9%,
which is very strong. It takes
Dr. Howes
a long time for the effects of
cannabis to "wash out" and its
widespread use could turn into
a serious health issue. Still, fur-
ther studies are needed to verify
this effect because many claim
that marijuana is the safest
recreational substance avail-
able. Thirty-six states permit
its use as a therapeutic drug
for, among others, those suffer-
ing from AIDS; various painful,
incurable and debilitating ill-
nesses; the harmful side effects
of cancer chemotherapy, and
glaucoma.
Smoking weed regularly (a
joint a day) can damage the
bronchial passages and be
linked to general "immunosup-
pression" and a host of mental
disorders.
Ir[ the America that I love,
we realize marijuana is like
any other powerful prescription
drug: it has potentially danger-
ous side effects, and the decision
to use it must involve legalities
and same drug considerations
of a risk-to-benefit ratio before
using it.
The North Oaks Emergency Room
entrance is now located to the back
of North Oaks Medical Center.
Dr. Eric Griener
(Times Photo)
Ponchatoula's big
American Flag
(Photo by Phillip Colwart)
Dr. Brandy Leger OD -
easy on the eyes
Optometrist Dr. Brandy
Leger with ophthalmolo-
gist Dr. Eric Griener (pic-
tured above) of Northshore
Eye Associates, located in a
modern new facility facing
1-12 off Range Road, gave a
mini-course in eyesight to
members of the Ponchatou-
la Rotary at the club's week-
ly Thursday lunch meeting.
She focused on glaucoma
and on cataracts, causes and
cures. Her talk was well-
received and drew several
follow-up inquiries from the
Rotarians present. (Times
Photo)
Weeding the Butterfly Garden
Pulling weeds and visiting (seated from left) Janice Hick-
ey and Vicky Fannaly, (standing in background) Margaret
Bailey, Dale Rieth and city worker. (Gardenette Photo)
Queen honors veterans
Queen of Erin Gilian van Bree wore her sash and crown
while honoring local veterans buried in Ponchatoula Cem-
etery. (Times Photo)
See Page One for more photos of the Krewe of Erin hon.
oring local veterans on the national holiday.
&hop us tho
crrY st [
WE WILL HAVE BOOTHS
ON THE BACK PORCH
• Arts .Crafts ,Collectables
Located In
The Heart of
Ponchatoula
next to the ~.,
raJlroad tracks
ROUTE TO ER FROM
CLUB OELUXE
~1 ~1 EMERGENCY SERVICES l
[
To access emergency services, take North Oaks
Drive to Emergency Services Drive.
The Emergency Room entrance will be on the left.
NORTH
OAKS
CLINIC
BLDG.
See map at right for the route to the entrance.
For more information, please call
North Oaks at (985) 345-2700 or visit www.northoaks.org.
NORTH OAKS
DIAGNOSTIC
CENTER
NORTHOAKS
___ MEDICAL CENTER
A Facility of North Oaks Health S stem
HOSPITAL DRIVE
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Times medical
columnist to lecture
Prof. Randolph M. Howes
MD, PhD has been invited
to make a presentation at
the Educational Summit
of The American College
For Advancement In Medi-
cine (ACAM). He is to give
a two hour lecture to the
general session in Holly-
wood, Florida in June. He
will discuss the current an-
tioxidant craze and what he
deems "antioxidant snake
oil." He has written twenty
two books on the dangers of
excessive antioxidant inges-
tion. He was ACAM's key-
note speaker in Anaheim,
California in 2005 and re-
ceived the Harold Harper
Award for the most promis-
ing innovative research in
America. (Courtesy Photo)
ROUTE TO ER
FROM HWY. 51
15790 Paul Vega, MD, Drive Hammond, I_A 70403 (985) 345-2700 www.northoaks.org