Academic literature on the topic 'Marijuana – South Africa'

Given the 2018 decriminalization of marijuana in South Africa for personal use and medicinal consumption, the aim of this research was to explore the perceptions of university students regarding the use, impact, legalization, and decriminalization of marijuana. Key findings revealed that a fair number of participants acknowledged using marijuana. When asked about the potential impact of marijuana on users, their families and significant others, they seemed to have a good understanding of the effects of the drug. However, while some participants were aware of the addictive nature of marijuana, others were not aware of the risk of addiction from smoking or ingesting this substance. However, they were able to weigh up the risks as well as the benefits of legalization/decriminalization of marijuana. This study has implications for health care professionals working with youth who use illicit substances such as marijuana, and in developing prevention and intervention programs aimed at the youth.

Using seven waves of data, collected twice a year from the 8th through the 11th grades in a low-resource community in Cape Town, South Africa, we aimed to describe the developmental trends in three specific leisure experiences (leisure boredom, new leisure interests, and healthy leisure) and substance use (cigarettes, alcohol, and marijuana) behaviors and to investigate the ways in which changes in leisure experiences predict changes in substance use behaviors over time. Results indicated that adolescents’ substance use increased significantly across adolescence, but that leisure experiences remained fairly stable over time. We also found that adolescent leisure experiences predicted baseline substance use and that changes in leisure experiences predicted changes in substance use behaviors over time, with leisure boredom emerging as the most consistent and strongest predictor of alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana use. Implications for interventions that target time use and leisure experiences are discussed.

Using two cross-sectional surveys with a purposive sample of 376 homeless children and adolescents in both Ghana and South Africa, this study was conducted to examine the prevalence, sociodemographic and psychosocial correlates of substance use among street children and adolescents. An interviewer-administered questionnaire was used to obtain information on substance use, sociodemographic and psychosocial variables. Both bivariate and multivariate analyses showed that street-connected adolescents in Ghana reported higher prevalence of lifetime alcohol use and past-month alcohol use than those in South Africa. The protective effect of male gender was not observed in South Africa but significantly more pronounced in Ghana for all substances except past-month marijuana use. Sexual assault, indirect sexual victimization, physical beating, robbery, assault with a weapon and survival sex increased the odds of lifetime alcohol use and past-month alcohol use in Ghana. However, in South Africa, only robbery and assault with a weapon increased the odds of lifetime alcohol use while robbery and sexual assault increased the odds of past-month alcohol use. These results have implications for the development of harm reduction interventions, taking into consideration both the psychosocial and cultural context of substance use.

Data from 333 Black university students in Limpopo, South Africa were used to investigate the association between the spirituality dimensions of religious and existential wellbeing (RWB and EWB) and health risk behaviours. The mean scores of almost all health risk behaviours, with the exception of the daily eating of healthy foods, varied according to the levels of RWB (p ≤ 0.05). On the other hand, with regards to levels of EWB, the analysis of physical activity produced a gender by EWB interaction only, and the results pertaining to the drinking of alcoholic beverages were marginal (p ≤ 0.10). There was a marginal gender by EWB effect for cigarette and marijuana use (p ≤ 0.10), with a 0.019 effect size (partial eta squared) for each analysis, and a gender effect for both (p ≤ 0.001 and 0.01, respectively). Effectively, there were no instances of statistically significant main effect of EWB (p > 0.05). Apparently, the type or dimensionality of spirituality used is important, and future studies should investigate varied measures of the construct to establish its relationship with health risk behaviour.

Aim: To identify risk factors for severe childhood malnutrition in a rural South African district with a high HIV/AIDS prevalence. Design: Case-control study. Setting: Bushbuckridge District, Limpopo Province, South Africa. Participants: 100 children with severe malnutrition (marasmus, kwashiorkor, and marasmic kwashiorkor) were compared with 200 better nourished (>-2 SD weight-for-age) controls, matched by age and village of residence. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted on a variety of biological and social risk factors. Results: HIV status was known only for a minority of cases (39%), of whom 87% were HIV positive, while 45% of controls were stunted. In multivariate analysis, risk factors for severe malnutrition included suspicion of HIV in the family (parents or children) (OR 217.7, 95% CI 22.7—2091.3), poor weaning practices (OR 3.0, 95% CI 2.0—4.6), parental death (OR 38.0, 95% CI 3.8—385.3), male sex (OR 2.7, 95% CI 1.2—6.0), and higher birth order (third child or higher) (OR 2.3, 95% CI 1.0—5.1). Protective factors included a diverse food intake (OR 0.53, 95% CI 0.41—0.67) and receipt of a state child support grant (OR 0.44, 95% CI 0.20—0.97). A borderline association existed for family wealth (OR 0.9 per unit, 95% CI 0.83—1.0), father smoking marijuana (OR 3.9, 95% CI 1.1— 14.5), and history of a pulmonary tuberculosis contact (OR 3.2, 95% CI 0.9—11.0). Conclusions: Despite the increasing contribution of HIV to the development of severe malnutrition, traditional risk factors such as poor nutrition, parental disadvantage and illness, poverty, and social inequity remain important contributors to the prevalence of severe malnutrition. Interventions aiming to prevent and reduce severe childhood malnutrition in high HIV prevalence settings need to encompass the various dimensions of the disease: nutritional, economic, and social, and address the prevention and treatment of HIV/AIDS.

Abstract Objectives Prenatal alcohol exposure is the most common preventable cause of neurodevelopmental deficits worldwide and causes growth restriction that worsens in the first year of life. Fetal alcohol growth restriction has been shown to be a marker for severity of alcohol-related neurocognitive deficits. However, the role of postnatal nutrition in fetal alcohol growth restriction remains unknown. The aims of this study were to compare infant feeding practices (e.g., breastfeeding, formula feeding, complementary foods) between heavy drinkers and controls and to examine whether these practices play confounding roles in fetal alcohol growth restriction. Methods 123 heavy drinking pregnant women and 86 controls were recruited at their first antenatal clinic visit in Cape Town, South Africa. Demographic background and alcohol, cigarette, marijuana, and methamphetamine use during pregnancy were assessed prenatally. Infant feeding practices were assessed at 6.5 mo postpartum using the USDA Infant Feeding Questionnaire. Infant weight, length and head circumference were measured at 2 wk and 6.5 and 12 mo. Potential confounders were those related to growth outcomes at p < .10 in univariate regression models. Results There were no differences between heavy drinkers and controls in duration of breastfeeding, exclusive breastfeeding, or formula or mixed feeding. Although heavy drinkers were slightly more likely to have given their infants porridge, eggs, red meat, chicken, fish, and fries, complementary feeding practices were otherwise remarkably similar between drinkers and controls. In regression models adjusting for potential confounders (maternal age, cigarette use, socioeconomic status (SES)), frequency of prenatal drinking (days/wk) was related to smaller weight- (B = −.33(−.53, −.13)), length- (B = −.36(−.53, −.18)), and head circumference-for-age (B = −.22(−.40, −.03)) z-scores at 12 mo. These relations were not altered by controlling for breastfeeding, formula feeding, or complementary foods. Conclusions Infant feeding practices among heavy drinkers and controls were very similar in this low-SES cohort. Fetal alcohol growth restriction was not attributable to differences in infant feeding practices and is thus likely a teratogenic effect of PAE. Funding Sources NIH/NIAAA; MI Lycaki-Young Fund.

List of abstacts and authors:1. Integrating the art and science of psychiatryEugene Allers2. Chronic pain as a predictor of outcome in an inpatient Psychiatric populationEugene Allers and Gerhard Grundling3. Recent advances in social phobiaChrister Allgulander4. Clinical management of patients with anxiety disordersChrister Allgulander5. Do elephants suffer from Schizophrenia? (Or do the Schizophrenias represent a disorder of self consciousness?) A Southern African perspectiveSean Exner Baumann6. Long term maintenance treatment of Bipolar Disorder: Preventing relapseCharles L. Bowden7. Predictors of response to treatments for Bipolar DisorderCharles L. Bowden8. Aids/HIV knowledge and high risk behaviour: A Geo-graphical comparison in a schizophrenia populationP Buckley, S van Vuuren, L Koen, J E Muller, C Seller, H Lategan, D J H Niehaus9. Does Marijuana make you go mad?David J Castle10. Understanding and management of Treatment Resistant SchizophreniaDavid J Castle11. Workshop on research and publishingDavid J Castle12. From victim to victor: Without a self-help bookBeatrix Jacqueline Coetzee13. The evaluation of the Gender Dysphoric patientFranco Colin14. Dissociation: A South African modelA M Dikobe, C K Mataboge, L M Motlana, B F Sokudela, C Kruger15. Designated smoking rooms...and other "Secret sins" of psychiatry: Tobacco cessation approaches in the severely mentally illCharl Els16. Dual diagnosis: Implications for treatment and prognosisCharl Els17. Body weight, glucose metabolism and the new generation antipsychoticsRobin Emsley18. Neurological abnormalities in first episode Schizophrenia: Temporal stability and clinical and outcome correlatesRobin Emsley, H Jadri Turner, Piet P Oosthuizen, Jonathan Carr19. Mythology of depressive illnesses among AfricansSenathi Fisha20. Substance use and High school dropoutAlan J. Flisher, Lorraine Townsend, Perpetual Chikobvu, Carl Lombard, Gary King21. Psychosis and Psychotic disordersA E Gangat 22. Vulnerability of individuals in a family system to develop a psychiatric disorderGerhard Grundling and Eugene Allers23. What does it Uberhaupt mean to "Integrate"?Jürgen Harms24. Research issues in South African child and adolescent psychiatryS M Hawkridge25. New religious movements and psychiatry: The Good NewsV H Hitzeroth26. The pregnant heroin addict: Integrating theory and practice in the development and provision of a service for this client groupV H Hitzeroth, L Kramer27. Autism spectrum disorderErick Hollander28. Recent advances and management in treatment resistanceEric Hollander29. Bipolar mixed statesM. Leigh Janet30. Profile of acute psychiatric inpatients tested for HIV - Helen Jospeh Hospital, JohannesburgA B R Janse van Rensburg31. ADHD - Using the art of film-making as an education mediumShabeer Ahmed Jeeva32. Treatment of adult ADHD co-morbiditiesShabeer Ahmed Jeeva33. Needs and services at ward one, Valkenberg HospitalDr J. A. Joska, Prof. A.J. Flisher34. Unanswered questions in the adequate treatment of depressionModerator: Dr Andre F JoubertExpert: Prof. Tony Hale35. Unanswered questions in treatment resistant depressionModerator: Dr Andre F JoubertExpert: Prof. Sidney Kennedy36. Are mentally ill people dangerous?Sen Z Kaliski37. The child custody circusSean Z. Kaliski38. The appropriatenes of certification of patients to psychiatric hospitalsV. N. Khanyile39. HIV/Aids Psychosocial responses and ethical dilemmasFred Kigozi40. Sex and PsychiatryB Levinson41. Violence and abuse in psychiatric in-patient institutions: A South African perspectiveMarilyn Lucas, John Weinkoove, Dean Stevenson42. Public health sector expenditure for mental health - A baseline study for South AfricaE N Madela-Mntla43. HIV in South Africa: Depression and CD4 countM Y H Moosa, F Y Jeenah44. Clinical strategies in dealing with treatment resistant schizophreniaPiet Oosthuizen, Dana Niehaus, Liezl Koen45. Buprenorphine/Naloxone maintenance in office practice: 18 months and 170 patients after the American releaseTed Parran Jr, Chris Adelman46. Integration of Pharmacotherapy for Opioid dependence into general psychiatric practice: Naltrexone, Methadone and Buprenorphine/ NaloxoneTed Parran47. Our African understanding of individulalism and communitarianismWillie Pienaar48. Healthy ageing and the prevention of DementiaFelix Potocnik, Susan van Rensburg, Christianne Bouwens49. Indigenous plants and methods used by traditional African healers for treatinf psychiatric patients in the Soutpansberg Area (Research was done in 1998)Ramovha Muvhango Rachel50. Symptom pattern & associated psychiatric disorders in subjects with possible & confirmed 22Q11 deletional syndromeJ.L. Roos, H.W. Pretorius, M. Karayiorgou51. Duration of antidepressant treatment: How long is long enough? How long is too longSteven P Roose52. A comparison study of early non-psychotic deviant behaviour in the first ten years of life, in Afrikaner patients with Schizophrenia, Schizo-affective disorder and Bipolar disorderMartin Scholtz, Melissa Janse van Rensburg, J. Louw Roos53. Treatment, treatment issues, and prevention of PTSD in women: An updateSoraya Seedat54. Fron neural networks to clinical practiceM Spitzer55. Opening keynote presentation: The art and science of PsychiatryM Spitzer56. The future of Pharmacotherapy for anxiety disordersDan J. Stein57. Neuropsychological deficits pre and post Electro Convulsive Therapy (ECT) thrice a week: A report of four casesUgash Subramaney, Yusuf Moosa58. Prevalence of and risk factors for Tradive Dyskinesia in a Xhosa population in the Eastern CapeDave Singler, Betty D. Patterson, Sandi Willows59. Eating disorders: Addictive disorders?Christopher Paul Szabo60. Ethical challenges and dilemmas of research in third world countriesGodfrey B. Tangwa61. The interface between Neurology and Psychiatry with specific focus on Somatoform dissociative disordersMichael Trimble62. Prevalence and correlates of depression and anxiety in doctors and teachersH Van der Bijl, P Oosthuizen63. Ingrid Jonker: A psychological analysisL. M. van der Merwe64. The strange world we live in, and the nature of the human subjectVasi van Deventer65. Art in psychiatry: Appendix or brain stem?C W van Staden66. Medical students on what "Soft skills" are about before and after curriculum reformC W van Staden, P M Joubert, A-M Bergh, G E Pickworth, W J Schurink, R R du Preez, J L Roos, C Kruger, S V Grey, B G Lindeque67. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) - Medical management. Methylphenidate (Ritalin) or Atomoxetine (Strattera)Andre Venter68. A comprehensive guide to the treatment of adults with ADHDW J C Verbeeck69. Treatment of Insomnia: Stasis of the Art?G C Verster70. Are prisoners vulnerable research participants?Merryll Vorster71. Psychiatric disorders in the gymMerryl Vorster72. Ciprales: Effects on anxiety symptoms in Major Depressive DisorderBruce Lydiard

The interrelation of ecological and psychosocial risk factors and adolescent marijuana use is examined in this three-sample longitudinal data analysis. Participants included (a) white children from the northeast of the USA, (b) African-American and Puerto Rican adolescents from New York City, and (c) adolescents living in Colombia, South America. Adolescents were interviewed in their homes. Independent measures were from the ecological, personality, peer, and family domains. Logistic regression analysis showed that the majority of ecological variables was related to adolescent marijuana use. Hierarchical regression analysis demonstrated that the ecological domain was directly and indirectly related to adolescent marijuana use (via the family, peer, and personality domains). Intervention programs should focus on adolescents' unique ecological settings while targeting universal risk factors (e.g., low ego integration, low parental identification) which predict adolescents' marijuana use. Similarities among the ecological predictors of adolescents' marijuana use in three samples, across time and place, allow a more universal approach to the prevention of substance use.

Purpose: This study explored demographic, social, behavioral, and health factors associated with current marijuana use (MU) among African American older adults who were residing in economically challenged areas of south Los Angeles. Methods: This community-based study recruited a consecutive sample of African American older adults (n = 340), age ≥ 55 years, residing in economically challenged areas of South Los Angeles. Interviews were conducted to collect data. Demographics (age and gender), socioeconomic status (educational attainment, income, and financial strain), marital status, living alone, health behaviors (alcohol drinking and cigarette smoking), health status (number of chronic medical conditions, body mass index, depression, and chronic pain), and current MU were collected. Logistic regression was used to analyze the data. Results: Thirty (9.1%) participants reported current MU. Age, educational attainment, chronic medical conditions, and obesity were negatively associated with current MU. Gender, income, financial strain, living alone, marital status, smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol, depression, and pain did not correlate with MU. Conclusion: Current MU is more common in younger, healthier, less obese, less educated African American older adults. It does not seem that African American older adults use marijuana for the self-medication of chronic disease, pain, or depression. For African American older adults, MU also does not co-occur with cigarette smoking and alcohol drinking. These results may help clinicians who provide services for older African Americans in economically challenged urban areas.

Magister Artium - MA
This study employed a social constructionist understanding of ‘identity’ to identify key markers of gendered ‘stoner’ identity and to consider how gendered ‘stoner’ identity is performed on a Western Cape campus. The aim was not simply to consider how they see themselves, but also how they are considered through the lenses and perception of non-smoking students at campus. In trying to understand the gendered experiences of ‘stoners’, this research was grounded in a feminist theoretical perspective and feminist methodological approaches to explore gendered constructions of ‘stoner’ identity at this Western Cape campus. The data for this study was collected through conducting two focus group discussions, and six semi structured, in-depth interviews with six male and six female students from a range of locations across campus. The participants in this study who smoke marijuana/weed did not reject the term ‘stoner’, rather, they claimed this identity, labelling themselves ‘stoners’. My research shows that ‘stoner’ identities both transgress and reinforce normative femininities and masculinities.

PhD, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand
Substance use is associated with mining accidents, increased health care utilisation, and economic loss. Although South Africa is a major mining country, paucity of data exists on substance use among mineworkers. To determine the prevalence of alcohol and cannabis use among mineworkers, the prevalence of accidents associated with substance use, and factors influencing substance use among this population, structured interviews of 1571 participants (involving breathalyser tests for alcohol and urine tests for cannabis), focus group discussions, and a record review of post-accident substance tests were carried out in seven mines. While structured interviews were carried out between March & October 2002, focus group discussions were carried out between May & June 2003, and record review was done between March & September 2004. Between 10.7% to 24.4% of participants across study mines, with a mean of 15.3%, are likely to be dependent on alcohol, while 4.6% to 21.5% of participants, with a mean of 9.1%, use cannabis. Between 0% and 5.9% of all breath samples, with a mean of 1.9%, contained alcohol ≥ 0.10mg/1000ml of breath, the legal limit for professional drivers. However, the majority of positive samples were collected on a Monday and day of sample collection was found to be a confounding factor. In mine P1 in 2003, 1% of samples tested in cases of accidents were positive for alcohol, and in 2002 and 2003, cannabis tests were positive in 4.9% and 3.9% of accident cases tested, respectively. v Low levels of education (p=0.020), low job categories (p=0.004) and lack of awareness of link between cannabis use and accidents (p=0.0001) were found to be positively associated with cannabis use. Being a full-time worker compared to a contract worker (p=0.004) was protective from cannabis use. While being married (p=0.001) was protective from alcohol use, there was no significant difference in the alcohol and cannabis use status of those who were married and lived with their wives at the mines and those who didn‟t live with their wives but visited them periodically. Findings of this study where alcohol use for fun (p=0.046) and relaxation (p=0.018) were associated with alcohol dependence, and where misconceptions about the energy-boosting attribute of cannabis, and perception that work is „most-times to always dangerous‟ (p=0.012) were associated with cannabis use and alcohol dependence, suggest the use of substances as a coping mechanism and highlight the link between social factors and substance use. Industry regulations employing a holistic approach and incorporating essential components, such as clear written individual mine policy, health promotion, monitoring and surveillance, Employee Assistance Programmes, disciplinary procedures and wellness programmes, can contribute towards substance use control among this population.

Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Education in the Department of Educational Psychology & Special Education at the University of Zululand, 2007.
The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of cannibas use on the adolescent's development. This was achieved by means of a literature study and an emprical investigation. The literature study found that the use of cannabis by the adolescent affects his physical, psychological (cognitive and affective), social and normative development.

M.Cur. (Psychiatric Nursing)
In local communities, young people use different substances for reasons known to them alone. This research study is about young people who are aged between 18 and 30 years, who smoke cannabis and are mentally ill. Mostly the parents of these young people, as well as other members of the family, the neighbours and the community at large experience many challenges resulting from cannabis smoking. The objectives of this study were to explore and describe the experiences of parents living with mental health care users smoking cannabis and to issue guidelines for the advanced psychiatric nurse practitioner to facilitate the mental health of parents living with mental health care users smoking cannabis in the context under study. A qualitative research design that was exploratory, descriptive and contextual was followed to achieve the aim and objectives of the study. Purposive sampling was used for sample selection based on inclusion criteria. The number of participants selected for this study was guided by data saturation. The total number of participants selected for this study was seven. The data collection methods used were phenomenological interviews, observation and field notes. In the phenomenological interview, the participant was asked: “How is it for you living with a mental health care user smoking cannabis?” The phenomenological interviews were audiotaped and transcribed. The researcher and an independent coder analysed the transcribed phenomenological interviews and field notes. The researcher used Tesch’s method of data analysis (Creswell, 2007:157) in analysing the data. The measures to ensure trustworthiness in this study include credibility, dependability, confirmability, transferability and authenticity. The seven ethical principles of competence of the researcher, right to self-determination, right to privacy, right to autonomy and confidentiality, right to protection from exploitation and obtaining informed consent guided this study ...

In South Africa, substance rehabilitation centers found alcohol as the primary substance abuse in eight out of the nine provinces. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of alcohol use and associated risk factors among University of Limpopo students with mean age of 21.5 years. This was a cross-sectional study and constituted a total of 500 female students and 417 male students from the University of Limpopo. Logistic regression was used to calculate the association between alcohol consumption and its predictors. Information about their alcohol consumption, the type of alcohol and the practice related to alcohol consumption was collected using a validated questionnaire. Tobacco and marijuana product use were significantly (P < 0.05) associated with alcohol use among University of Limpopo students for unadjusted (OR ranges 4.31 95%CI 2.71 6.87 to 4.92 95%CI 3.16 7.70) and after adjusting for age gender and amount of money deposited into the student account by the bursary scheme (OR ranges from 4.14 95%CI 2.59 6.62 to 4.50 95%CI 2.87 7.06). Tobacco product use, marijuana use and enhancing interpersonal relationships are major risk factors associated to current alcohol use. Future studies are required to investigate the development of lifestyle and cardiovascular disease over time among University of Limpopo students.