Researchers at Colorado State University have decided to take a closer look at how marijuana dabbing may impair a person’s ability to drive. And while we wish this was an examination on the dance move known as dabbing, and how spontaneously busting a dab while driving might adversely affect your capabilities, sadly it is not.
Instead CSU will study dabbing, the popular method of consuming marijuana concentrates. As the CSU press release announces, it is a “highly potent” means of inhaling cannabis, though little research has been done regarding its effects on motor skills.
The CSU researchers will not be providing cannabis to patients. Instead Cinnamon Bidwell, the study’s principal investigator, and his team have identified individuals who already dab and schedule to meet them when they planned to dab.
“The subjects are doing what they would normally do, to themselves,” CSU faculty member Brian Tracy said in the release. “It’s an observational study.”
The study will be the first of its kind and focus on movement ability. Using an iPod Touch strapped to participants’ leg, one test will focus on subjects’ ability to quickly move that leg, similar to the motion of pressing the gas or brake pedal. Another test will measure reaction time, determining how quickly the participant could turn a steering wheel if they needed to.
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment funded the three-year project with a $839,500 grant. The result aim to help prevent under the influence of cannabis.
