Richmond Times-Dispatch from Richmond, Virginia • A7

Tuesday, November 16, 2010 A7 Teens smoking pot show brain changes Study says early and habitual users score worse on mental tests Bloomberg News Service Smoking marijuana regularly before the age of 16 causes changes in the brain mat can impair a young person's ability to focus, learn from mistakes and think abstractly, according to a Harvard University study. On brain scans, the youngest pot smokers showed activation in regions of the brain that was not seen in those who started smoking after age 16, which suggests early exposure to marijuana causes neural changes, researchers at Harvard-affiliated McLean Hospital found. Early and habitual users performed more poorly on tests of cognitive functions. Research on how marijuana changes a developing brain is important, as it is the most frequently used illegal drug in the U.S., said study author Staci Gruber, director of the cognitive and clinical neuroimaging core at McLean Hospital in Belmont, Mass. Almost 16 percent of eighth graders have tried marijuana, and that number rises to 42 percent by 12th grade, a 2009 study from the National Institute on Drug Abuse found.

"Chronic, early users of marijuana make repetitive incorrect responses despite the fact I'm telling them they're wrong," said Gruber, an as sistant professor of psychology at Harvard. That's called cognitive inflexibility, and you see it in babies." The research, presented yesterday at the Society for Neurosciences meeting in San Diego, also found that the group that started earlier smoked more pot more often than those who started later. People who began smoking before age 16 bad 25.1 smokes a week, compared with 12.1 in those who began later. The early-onset group smoked almost three times as many grams a week. Paid Advertittment SURGERY ISN'T YOUR ONLY OPTION.

i '-Li i I Richmond Times-Dispatch NATIONAL BRIEFS Louisiana's Jindal: No national plans in 2012 BATON ROUGE, La. Republican Gov. Bobby Jindal of Louisiana, now promoting bis new book "Leadership and Crisis," says he doesn't plan to run for president in 2012. Republicans are seeking hopefuls to challenge President Barack Obama, but the 39-year-old governor said yesterday that his only political ambition is to seek reelection as governor next year. Californian charged with aiding terrorists SAN DIEGO A California woman has been charged with conspiring to provide money and people to a Somali terrorist group to help carry out killings in the African nation, according to a federal indictment unsealed yesterday.

Nima Ali Yusuf a 24-year-old permanent resident of the U.S., conspired in Southern California and elsewhere to aid al-Sbabab, an al-Qaida-linked militia trying to create an Islamic state in Somalia, the indictment states. Tomblin takes oath as W.Va. governor CHARLESTON, W.Va. West Virginia Senate President Earl Ray TombKn yesterday became the state's 35th governor. Tomblin is keeping his Senate seat and leadership office but otherwise will set aside his legislative duties while acting as governor.

Some have criticized the plan and called for a special election before 2012. Tomblin, a state lawmaker since 1974, succeeds fellow Democrat Joe Mancbin in, who was sworn in as a U.S. senator yesterday. Mancbin was elected to fill the late Sen. Robert C.

Byrd's seat Bodies of 3 boaters recovered in Arizona PHOENIX Authorities said yesterday that the bodies of three boaters have been recovered from a lake northeast of Phoenix. The Maricopa County Sheriffs Office said the men, who were in their 20s and 30s, were camping with family and friends when they left to go boating on the Verde River on Sunday about 1 a.m. Their bodies were found yesterday in Horseshoe Lake. Felon is charged in Calif, officer's death RIVERSIDE, Calif. A felon accused in the ambush shooting death of a Southern California police officer was charged yesterday with murder, vehicle theft, and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Earl Ellis Green ofRubi-doux also faces special-circumstance allegations in the death of Officer Ryan Bona-rninio that could make him eligible for the death penalty if convicted. Fran WIfb Bflports Fiid Advertbemcnt XIAFLEX" Left hand shows Dupuytren's contracture when a cord can be felt. If you're an adult who has Dupuytren's contracture with a cord that can be felt, surgery isn't your only option. See a hand specialist today. Ask about XIAFLEX, an FDA-approved nonsurgical treatment.

Get more information at XIAFLEXNOW.com. TRANSFORMING TREATMENT How to get more money for your auto Before receiving XIAFLEX, tell your healthcare provider if you have had an allergic reaction to a previous XIAFLEX injection, or have a bleeding problem or any other medical conditions. Tell your healthcare provider about all the medicines you take, including prescription and non-prescription medicines, vitamins, and herbal supplements. Be sure to tell them if you use blood thinners such as aspirin, clopidogrel (Plavix), prasugrel hydrochloride (Effient), or warfarin sodium (Coumadin). Common side effects with XIAFLEX include: swelling of the injection site or the hand, bleeding or bruising at the injection site; and pain or tenderness of the injection site or the hand, swelling of the lymph nodes (glands) in the elbow or underarm, itching, breaks in the skin, redness or warmth of the skin, and pain in the underarm.

XIAFLEX is a prescription medicine used to treat adults with Dupuytren's contracture when a "cord" can be felt Over time, the thickening of this cord in your hand can cause one or more fingers to bend toward your palm, so that you cannot straighten them. XIAFLEX should be injected into the cord by a healthcare provider who is experienced in injection procedures of the hand and treating people with Dupuytren's contracture. XIAFLEX helps to break down the cord that is causing the finger to be bent IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION XIAFLEX can cause serious side effects, including: Tendon or ligament damage. Receiving an injection of XIAFLEX may cause damage to a tendon or ligament in your hand and cause it to break or weaken. This could require surgery to fix the damaged tendon or ligament.

Call your healthcare provider right away if you have trouble bending your injected finger (towards the wrist) after the swelling goes down or you have problems using your treated hand after your follow-up visit. Nerve iniurv or other serious iniurv of the hand. Call your healthcare provider if you get numbness, tingling, or increased pain in your treated finger or hand after your injection or after your follow-up visit. 1 Allergic reactions. Allergic reactions can happen in people who have received an injection of XIAFLEX because it contains foreign proteins.

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Please see Brief Summary of the Full Prescribing Information on adjacent page..