--- title: 'Skunk-like' Cannabis Increases Risk of Developing a Psychosis description: One in four new cases of psychotic disorders could be linked to the use of high-potency “skunk-like” cannabis, a new study has found. canonical: https://time.com/3711513/skunk-cannabis-marijuana-psychosis/ author: Helen Regan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-02-17T05:47:46.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:59:53.744Z article:section: Science og:title: 25% of New Psychotic Disorders Linked to 'Skunk' Cannabis og:description: The risk is five times higher for those who use it every day compared with non-users, says study. og:url: https://time.com/3711513/skunk-cannabis-marijuana-psychosis/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc0e3ca0251534c3/69877f8c428a9efb09cc72b0/skunk-cannabis-study.jpg?branch=production&width=725&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 725 og:image:height: 408 og:image:alt: 157427601 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: 25% of New Psychotic Disorders Linked to 'Skunk' Cannabis twitter:description: The risk is five times higher for those who use it every day compared with non-users, says study. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc0e3ca0251534c3/69877f8c428a9efb09cc72b0/skunk-cannabis-study.jpg?branch=production&width=725&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # A Quarter of New Psychotic Disorders Linked to 'Skunk' Cannabis, Study Says ## Video: Inside A Christian Pot Shop [Watch (HLS stream): Inside A Christian Pot Shop](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/vz4fpqkC.m3u8) (5:22)  _Published 2014-04-03. Bryan and Lanette Davies run a Christian medical marijuana dispensary in Sacramento. After God told Bryan to open a cannabis shop, the couple say they have been doing God's work in providing natural care to the sick._ by [Helen Regan](https://time.com/author/helen-regan/) ## Helen Regan Feb 17, 2015 5:47 AM UTC  joint jointNicholas Belton—Getty Images by [Helen Regan](https://time.com/author/helen-regan/) ## Helen Regan Feb 17, 2015 5:47 AM UTC One in four new cases of [psychotic](http://www.bbc.com/news/health-31480234) disorders could be directly linked to the use of high-potency “skunk-like” cannabis, a new study has found. Researchers from King’s College London [found](https://docs.google.com/viewer?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thelancet.com%2Fpb%2Fassets%2Fraw%2FLancet%2Fpdfs%2F14TLP0454%5FDi%20Forti.pdf) smokers of super-strength cannabis, colloquially known as skunk, were three times as likely to develop symptoms of a psychosis than those who don’t use the drug, the BBC reports. That risk increases to five times as high if the user smokes skunk on a daily basis. “The results show that psychosis risk in cannabis users depends on both the frequency of use and cannabis potency,” said Dr. Marta Di Forti, lead author of the study. However, the team found that milder varieties of cannabis such as hashish did not increase the risk of psychotic illness. Psychosis refers to hallucinations or delusions that can be found in certain psychiatric conditions such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. _Read next:_ [_Driving While Stoned Is Much Safer Than Driving Drunk, Says a New Study_](http://time.com/3706491/driving-stoned-drunk-study-safety/?xid=time%5Freadnext) [_Listen to the most important stories of the day._](http://time.com/newsletter/the-brief/?sl%5Fautoplay=true&xid=spl-fullbrief-article) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3711513/skunk-cannabis-marijuana-psychosis/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3711513/skunk-cannabis-marijuana-psychosis/"},"headline":"A Quarter of New Psychotic Disorders Linked to 'Skunk' Cannabis, Study Says","datePublished":"2015-02-17T05:47:46.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:59:53.744Z","description":"Daily users of high-potency marijuana are five times more likely to suffer psychosis than those who never touch it","url":"https://time.com/3711513/skunk-cannabis-marijuana-psychosis/","keywords":["Research","Drugs","Science topic","cannabis"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc0e3ca0251534c3/69877f8c428a9efb09cc72b0/skunk-cannabis-study.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Helen Regan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/helen-regan/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltcc0e3ca0251534c3/69877f8c428a9efb09cc72b0/skunk-cannabis-study.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"157427601","caption":"157427601","creditText":"Nicholas Belton—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/research/","name":"Research"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3711513/skunk-cannabis-marijuana-psychosis/","name":"A Quarter of New Psychotic Disorders Linked to 'Skunk' Cannabis, Study Says"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Inside A Christian Pot Shop","description":"Bryan and Lanette Davies run a Christian medical marijuana dispensary in Sacramento. 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