Women who are pregnant, planning a pregnancy or breastfeeding should be screened for cannabis use and strongly discouraged from it, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists said in new clinical guidelines published Friday.

Cannabis use during pregnancy has been rising for years. Many women rely on the drug to cope with nausea and other pregnancy symptoms.

But the college warned that mounting evidence linked cannabis to preterm births, low birth weights and a greater need for neonatal intensive care, as well as neurocognitive and behavioral problems in children.

“Patients are often using cannabis to help with some kind of medical ailment, not recreationally — in their mind, they think it’s a more natural way to deal with a medical problem,” said Dr. Melissa Russo, an autho

See Full Page