Know the Facts About Marijuana

Marijuana remains the most abused illegal substance among youth. By the time they graduate high school, about 46 percent of U.S. teens will have tried marijuana at least once in their lifetime. Although use among teens dropped dramatically in the previous decade, adolescent marijuana use is again on the upswing. Probably due to the movement in this country to legalize marijuana, many teens (and many adults), believe that marijuana is safe and that the risk associated with smoking marijuana is very low. In fact, more than 50% of seniors and 40% of sophomores in Lake County believe that smoking marijuana is either not risky at all or only "slightly" risky. (Stats taken from the Lake County 2014 Illinois Youth Survey data.

This trending belief by teens that marijuana is not risky is troubling because we know more than ever about how a teen's brain is developing and how adding marijuana to this development is indeed very harmful.

"Exposure to cannabinoids during critical stages of development can change both the function and structure of the brain, possibly forever." - Dr. John Knight, MD, Director of Boston Children's Hospital's Center
​for Adolescent Substance Abuse Research

As parents, we need to take the time to educate ourselves and learn the true facts. Use the following facts to have on-going conversations with your kids and help them stay drug and alcohol-free. Download your free Marijuana Talk Kit today.

Marijuana - Risky or Not?
Pro-marijuana groups want you to believe that marijuana is just an herb--it can't hurt you, it's not addicting, and it's less harmful than alcohol. However, the true facts remain, marijuana is harmful and addicting--especially to a teen with a brain that is still in development.

Here is what we know to be true:
Today's marijuana is more potent than it ever has been. Today's marijuana is more than three times as potent as it was in 1983 with an average THC of 15% today versus just under 4% in 1983.

• Marijuana is addicting. Marijuana is addictive and the risk of addiction increases if use starts in adolescence. Around 1 in 11 people who use marijuana become addicted. This risk increases to 1 in 6 for those who start using in their teens.
• You can overdose on marijuana. Due to the increased potency, marijuana can lead to dangerous levels of intoxication requiring emergency treatment. This is more commonly associated with edibles and hash oil, sometimes referred to as "dabbing".
• Marijuana impairs driving. As if teen don't struggle enough with driving, marijuana compromises judgment and affects many other skills required for safe driving: alertness, concentration, coordination, and reaction time. Marijuana use makes it difficult to judge distances and react to signals and sounds on the road. Marijuana is the most commonly identified illegal drug in fatal accidents. By itself, marijuana is believed to roughly double a driver's chances of being in an accident, and the combination of marijuana and even small amounts of alcohol is even more dangerous—more so than either substance by itself. And since marijuana stays in urine for 3 weeks, a driver can be charged with a DUI even if s/he was not using drugs at the time. (Remember, 1 in 5 seniors in our community report being in a car driven by someone under the influence of marijuana!)
• Marijuana reduces school performance. THC alters the ability of the hippocampus, a brain area related to learning and memory. As a result, marijuana has negative effects on attention, motivation, memory, and learning that can persist after the drug's immediate effects wear off—especially in regular users. Someone who smokes marijuana daily may be functioning at a reduced intellectual level most or all of the time.
• Marijuana is a potential gateway drug. Long-term studies of high school students’ patterns of drug use show that most young people who use other drugs have tried marijuana, alcohol, or tobacco first. For example, young people who have used marijuana are at greater risk of using cocaine than are those who have not used marijuana.
• Marijuana affects the developing teen's brain. We now know that a teen's brain is "under construction." Adolescence is not the time to add marijuana. Pregnant woman are told not to drink or use drugs for this same reason--to protect the development of their baby's brain. Teens should be told the same thing. Simply put, THC slows down the way the communication between brain cells. Adding marijuana to a developing brain can lead to permanent damage.
• Marijuana use can result in permanent IQ loss. Recent research shows that people who begin using marijuana heavily as teens may permanently lose an average of 8 points in IQ by mid-adulthood. This would take an individual from the 50th percentile in IQ to the 29th percentile.
• Marijuana increases risk of developing other mental disorders. Young people who smoke marijuana regularly double their risk of developing psychotic symptoms as they grow older, including addiction, schizophrenia, depression or anxiety, sometimes by as much as 5 or 6 percent. (source: The British Medical Journal)

"Adolescence is the absolute worst time to introduce mind-altering drugs, such as marijuana, because it can disrupt development. Think of the teen years as the last golden opportunity to make the brain as healthy and smart as possible."
- Krista Lisdah, Director of the Brain Imaging and Neuropsychology Lab - University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee