Marijuana


Fact: There are stronger forms of marijuana available to adolescents today than in the 1960's. Stronger marijuana means stronger effects. Research shows that nearly 50 percent of teenagers try marijuana before they graduate from high school. In 2000, over 3 million youths aged 12 to 17 used marijuana at least once during the past year. White youths were more likely to use marijuana than Hispanic, black, or Asian youths. Youths with an average grade of D or below were more than 4 times as likely to have used marijuana in the past year as youths who reported an average grade of A. 57 percent of youths aged 12 to 17 agreed that obtaining marijuana would be easy.Nearly 25 percent of youths agreed that a lot of drug selling occurs in their neighborhoods. One in six youth had been approached by someone selling drugs in the month before the survey. More than 25 percent of youths who had been approached by someone selling drugs in the month before the survey had used marijuana in the past month. There are some signs you might be able to see.

If someone is high on marijuana, he or she might:

  • Seem dizzy and have trouble walking
  • Seem silly
  • Have a hard time remembering things that just happened
  • When the early effects fade, over a few hours, the user can become very sleepy

Parents hould be aware of changes in their child's behavior, although this may be difficult with teenagers. Parents should look for withdrawal, depression, fatigue, carelessness with grooming, hostility, and deteriorating relationships with family members and friends. In addition, changes in academic performance, increased absenteeism or truancy, lost interest in sports or other favorite activities, and changes in eating or sleeping habits could be related to drug use. However, these signs may also indicate problems other than use of drugs.

The use of marijuana can produce adverse physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral changes, and - contrary to popular belief - it can be addictive. Marijuana smoke, like cigarette smoke, can harm the lungs. The use of marijuana can impair short-term memory, verbal skills, and judgment and distort perception. It also may weaken the immune system and possibly increase a user's likelihood of developing cancer.

In addition, parents should be aware of:

  • Signs of drugs and drug paraphernalia, including pipes and rolling papers.
  • Odor on clothes and in the bedroom
  • Use of eye drops
  • Clothing, posters, jewelry, etc., promoting drug use<
  • Marijuana is not the safe drug that many would have you believe it is. Each joint is as harmful as five tobacco cigarettes, and when a joint is smoked, more than 2,000 chemicals are absorbed by the lungs. In addition, this drug has detrimental effects on memory and it hinders learning. And - habitual use of marijuana leads to the likelihood that the pot smoker will be attracted to harder drugs.

"In the 1970s, the baby boom generation was coming of age, and its drug of choice was marijuana. By 1979, more than 60 percent of 12th-graders had tried marijuana at least once in their lives. From this peak, the percentage of 12th-graders who had ever used marijuana decreased for more than a decade, dropping to a low of 33 percent in 1992. However, in 1993, first-time marijuana use by 12th-graders was on the upswing, reaching 50 percent by 1997. Although the percentage of 12th-graders who have experience with marijuana has remained roughly level since then, there is still reason to be concerned. In 1999, more than 2 million Americans used marijuana for the first time. Two-thirds of them were between the ages of 12 and 17. Furthermore, the marijuana that is available today can be 5 times more potent than the marijuana of the 1970s.

The increasing use of marijuana by very young teens may have a profoundly negative effect upon their development. We hope that this research report will help make readers aware of our current knowledge of marijuana abuse and its harmful effects."
Glen R. Hanson, Ph.D., D.D.S. Acting Director National Institute on Drug Abuse

Habitual use of marijuana leads to the likelihood that the pot smoker will be attracted to harder drugs.