Let’s be honest—despite all the progress that cannabis has made these past few years, most people still label marijuana users as unintelligible “stoner” types with baked minds and fried memories. “Intelligent” is usually the last word associated with those who enjoy cannabis. And while most of us know these classic, age-old stereotypes couldn’t be further from the truth, we now have actual science to back it up! At least in women.
A recent study conducted by The Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health compiled data on more than 800 women, analyzing things like general intelligence, schooling levels, smoking habits, and overall lifestyle. The results? Women who used cannabis were found to have higher IQs than the general public. In fact, they were up to 50% smarter than the average woman!
Unfortunately, the scientists couldn’t exactly explain the results of the study or why women who used cannabis were of higher intelligence, but they did offer up several theories, the most interesting of which revolved around exploring new experiences.
The scientists suggested that those with higher IQs often tend to seek out new and exciting stimulations, and experimenting with cannabis is likely one of them due to its ability to open the mind and put one in tune with their greater consciousness. Since women with higher IQs often tend to easily get bored with the status quo, turning to cannabis makes perfect sense, which could very easily explain the direct correlation between those who smoke cannabis having higher IQs compared with those who don’t.
This isn’t the first study to find a connection between cannabis use and higher intelligence, but it is one of the first to do so in such great numbers. And while the jury might still be out amongst those who frown upon marijuana, there’s certainly no doubt amongst those who use it—and perhaps knowing that is all the research we need.
