When it comes to kids and pot, we got too many dopes
An important study examining what we know and don’t know about the health effects and harms of marijuana on teenagers came out last week and mysteriously — given the current pot debate in B.C., particularly here in the Big Smoke of Vancouver — it received virtually no attention.
Then again, perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised, since the report by the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse likely won’t be embraced by the profit-motivated pot pushers who are trying to control the debate, including around what is hilariously referred to as medical marijuana.
Those folks have become so emboldened in recent months with their delusional and self-serving health claims about pot that I’m surprised they aren’t yet promoting putting cannabis oil in baby bottles to treat colic. Hell, we may as well start our tiny future citizens early so they’ll feel part of the stoner culture that our civic leaders are merrily enabling.
There is no doubt that pot does relieve a few medical problems, including the nausea that accompanies chemotherapy, but generally it is less effective than other drugs that doctors will prescribe.
And anyone who has actually been sold on the notion that the 80-plus illegal “medical” pot shops now foolishly being considered for licensing by Vancouver city hall are primarily about treating illnesses, well, why don’t you just go ahead and have another brownie?
As people in the addiction-treatment community will tell you, 99 per cent of the folks buying “medical” marijuana are just exploiting a hole in Canada’s drug laws to get high. It does seem pretty odd that Vancouverites, who are regularly revealed in studies to be the healthiest and fittest people in Canada, mysteriously have so many citizens requiring regular doses of dope, including so many apparently healthy young people in their 20s and 30s. No other big city in the country has dozens of pot shops freely selling unregulated products mostly produced by gangsters.
Yup, it’s a stumper. Seems odd that our cops and civic leaders are so blasé, but then this is Vancouver.
Getting back to marijuana’s effects on kids, the main concern for me isn’t the pot shops’ proximity to schools, among the issues city hall is focusing on with their ultra vires attempts to regulate them. My main objection to city hall adopting a permissive attitude to an illegal and damaging drug is that it lends it an air of legitimacy to and normalizes pot use, especially among teenagers.
If adults want to get high, be my guest; I’ve long supported decriminalization of pot use. But not wanting to jail marijuana enthusiasts or waste police and court time going after them doesn’t equate to believing that regular pot use is a good thing or something to promote, especially for teenagers with developing brains.
In her forward to the CCSA report, Joy Johnson, vice-president, research at Simon Fraser University, highlights some of its findings:
Cannabis is not a harmless drug; It can be addictive, especially if use starts in adolescence;
Early and frequent cannabis use is linked with reduced IQ, lower school performance and increased risk of dropping out;
Cannabis use affects cognitive and motor functions, and is a safety hazard for drivers;
Early and frequent use can alter the structure of the developing brain, including areas responsible for memory, decision making and executive functioning;
There is a link between cannabis and mental illness; and
Some adverse effects might be irreversible, with the potential to seriously limit a young person’s educational, occupational and social development.
Yeah, that all sure sounds benign. Everyone, parents in particular, should read the CCSA report, which is on its website, www.ccsa.ca.