Women who use marijuana may have more difficulty conceiving than non-consumers, according to a study by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) released Monday.
The research, published in the scientific journal Human Reproduction, did not analyze marijuana use among women couples, which could have influenced conception rates, the NIH added in a statement.
Women who reported consuming products such as marijuana or hashish in the weeks before pregnancy or urine tests were positive for cannabis were 40% less likely to conceive in each monthly cycle than non-consumers.
Whereas, in each monthly cycle, women who consumed at the same time as trying to conceive were 41% less likely than those who were not in contact with cannabis.
The difference was greater when analyzing the percentage of those who became pregnant: just 42% of those who said they had used cannabis could conceive compared to 66% of non-consuming women.
“Cannabis users also had differences in the reproductive hormones involved in ovulation. These differences could have potentially influenced their likelihood of conception,” the note stated.
The authors further pointed out that animal studies revealed that cannabis use could alter the lining of the uterus.
The researchers collected this data from a study that included more than 1,200 women between the ages of 18 and 40 who had had one or two miscarriages and participated in six monthly cycles of the survey while trying to get pregnant or during pregnancy. ‘pregnancy.
A total of 62 women, equivalent to 5% of the total participants, had a positive urine test or say they had consumed cannabis before conception.
Of this the researchers admitted that the number observed was small and recommended to be careful with cannabis use as long as definitive evidence is available.