Prenatal Cannabis Exposure Tied to Childhood Sleep Problems

TUESDAY, July 21, 2020 (HealthDay News) — Prenatal cannabis exposure is associated with child sleep outcomes, according to a study published online June 28 in Sleep Health.

Evan A. Winiger and John K. Hewitt, Ph.D., from the University of Colorado at Boulder, used data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study (including 11,875 children ages 9 to 10 years) to assess whether maternal reports of prenatal cannabis use are associated with child sleep outcomes.

The researchers found that any prenatal cannabis use was associated with symptoms of disorders of initiating and maintaining sleep, disorders of arousal, sleep wake disorders, disorders of excessive somnolence, and a summed sleep disorder score. The frequency of prenatal daily cannabis use was significantly associated with disorders of excessive somnolence.

“Although causality is not established, the results suggest potential long-term effects of prenatal cannabis exposure on sleep and the prudence of abstinence from cannabis use while pregnant,” the authors write.

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