Adults’ marijuana use comes with a caveat
Ever since Massachusetts voters approved a ballot measure legalizing recreational marijuana use for adults, we’ve been concerned about its trickle-down effect on our younger population.
Teens susceptible to peer pressure or lured by the thrill of using a forbidden substance pose a threat to themselves and others when they take a hit or ingest a pot-laced edible.
An article written by Dr. Maria H. Rahmandar of the American Academy of Pediatrics, recently published in the newspaper, discussed the impact the legalization of marijuana for adult medicinal and recreational use has on tweens’ and teens’ perception of the drug.
Given that marijuana can be used to relieve pain, enhance sleep or cope with the symptoms of a serious illness, do young people assume it’s just another kind of medicine?
As a pediatrician and a parent, Rahmandar writes of her concerns about the health risks of cannabis use by teens, who are still in their formative years.
And what does the doctor think parents and caregivers should know about cannabis? Here are some of the abridged highlights:
• As youmight expect, adolescent marijuana use increases with age. In 2022, according to data from themonitoring the Future survey of substance use behaviors, 8.3% of eighth graders, 19.5% of
10th graders and 30.7% of 12th graders reported using cannabis in the past 12months.
• It has powerful effects on young brains, which don’t fully develop until about age
25. That’s one ofmany reasons the American Academy of Pediatrics believes young people shouldn’t use cannabis.
• It canmake lifemore dangerous. Driving, skateboarding, riding a bike or playing sports while high can lead to serious accidents. Teens under the influence may also take more sexual risks, leading to long-term consequences.
• It can harm a child’s lungs. Like tobacco, cannabis smoke irritates the lining of the mouth, throat and lungs. In fact, cannabis smoke has many of the same toxins and cancercausing chemicals as tobacco smoke.
• It can be addictive, especially if cannabis use starts in the teen years. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 3 in 10 people who use cannabis show signs of a cannabis use disorder. Furthermore, for those who start in their teens, their risk of developing a cannabis use disorder is even higher than those who start using as an adult.
• Substance use disorder happens when your child can’t stop using, even when they experience negative consequences or want to quit. Cannabis is themost common substance used by teens seeking treatment.
A 2022 Canadian study also gave credence to the concerns of many in our state’s medical community about health risks in children associated with marijuana, specifically edible cannabis products.
The Canadian review, reported in the Boston Herald, found that hospitalizations of children for cannabis poisonings surged after the drug’s legalization, particularly in provinces that allowed the purchase of cannabis edibles.
Provinces that permitted the sale of these products, such as gummies, chocolates and baked goods, saw an increase in hospitalizations that was more than two times higher than those that prohibited their sale.
Statistics and analyses, while enlightening, lack the human element.
It’s only when those abstractions become reality does their full impact hit home.
That’s what occurred at a school in Boston on Monday.
Police were called to Maurice J. Tobin School, a K-8 school in Roxbury, around noon after a student went to the nurse feeling sick. The school discovered that multiple students had eaten chocolate containing cannabis, also known as an edible, police said.
The student feeling sick was sent to the hospital for further care. The other students were released to their families.
“We are deeply concerned about the recent reports of students ingesting edibles. We are encouraging parents, guardians, and caregivers to take an active role in helping us our students are aware of the risks associated with consuming these products and that they understand the potential consequences, including the potential for serious health issues,” a Boston Public Schools spokesperson told WCVB.
The CDC offered this warning: “Children, adults, and pets can mistake marijuana products, particularly edibles, for regular food or candy. Consuming marijuana can make children very sick.”
The CDC stated kids may “have problems walking or sitting up or may have a hard time breathing.”
Though different in effect and duration, the legal consumption of alcohol and marijuana inevitably entices minors to mimic the same behavior.
Acknowledging that fact, coupled with an understanding of its adverse consequences, hopefully will help keepmarijuana products out of the wrong hands.