Brain Exercise and Addiction Trial

Heavy cannabis use is associated with substantive learning and memory impairments and elevated risk of psychopathology. It has been repeatedly demonstrated that the hippocampus, centrally implicated in these processes, is particularly vulnerable to the deleterious effects of prolonged exposure to cannabis. This deterioration of hippocampal structure, function, and biochemistry can be reversed, but this requires two or more years of abstinence from cannabis. However, most heavy cannabis users find it extremely difficult to maintain abstinence over extended periods and current treatments for cannabis use disorders are inadequate. There is a pressing clinical need for an intervention that rapidly accelerates hippocampal recovery, ameliorates the associated cognitive impairments and mental health symptoms, and leads to improved treatment outcomes. One promising candidate is physical exercise. In addition to the well-known physical health benefits, regular exercise also has a potent positive effect on brain health. The current study will investitive the capacity of two different neuroscientifically-informed 12-week exercise programs can restore brain health for heavy long term cannabis users.