Government officials should consider the effects marijuana has on younger generations before passing laws to make marijuana widely available in the U.S.
According to a 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 48 million Americans ages 12 and up used marijuana within the past year and one-third of eighth graders stated it was “fairly easy” or “very easy” to obtain.
Why should a drug such as marijuana, which has limited research done on younger populations, be so obtainable by children?
However, I won’t completely knock marijuana as it’s a useful substance that can help people get through tough circumstances, including chronic pain, drug addiction, anxiety and cancer, according to an Aug. 2, 2018 Medical News Today newsletter.
Personally, occasional marijuana use has helped me improve my eating habits and helped me lose 20 pounds during quarantine by channeling my unwelcomed emotions into self-improvement and reflection.
Francis L.Young, the chief administrative law judge for the Drug Enforcement Administration, gave his opinion on marijuana usage, where he declared it in 1988 as one of the safest, active substances in the world, according to a Sept. 19, 1988 Washington Post article.
“In strict medical terms, marijuana is far safer than many foods we commonly consume,” Young said in the article. “For example, eating ten raw potatoes can result in a toxic response. By comparison, it is physically impossible to eat enough marijuana to induce death. Marijuana in its natural form is one of the safest, therapeutically active substances known to man.”
However, just because marijuana isn’t life-threatening, doesn’t mean it’s safe.
Researchers analyzed 11 different studies and published their discoveries regarding 23,317 individuals who showed adolescent cannabis consumption was associated with an increased risk of developing depression and suicidal behavior later in life, even without a preexisting condition, according to a Feb. 13, 2019 JAMA Psychiatry study.
JAMA Psychiatry is a peer-reviewed medical journal published monthly by the American Medical Association.
Frequent marijuana use during pregnancy can also lead to multiple complications such as premature births, underweight births or stillbirths, according to an October 2016 Obstetrics and Gynecology study.
Children born from marijuana users are more likely to be born with neurological development problems such as impulsivity, hyperactivity, a decline in executive function and sustained attention, according to an Aug. 30, 2017 Neuropsychopharmacology article.
Neuropsychopharmacology is a peer-reviewed journal published by Springer Nature, a German-British scientific publishing company.
If marijuana is to continue on its path of becoming legal on a federal level, pregnant women must be educated on the adverse effects of marijuana and childbirth.
In regards to frequent marijuana use in adolescents, potential problems that can be harmful include a decline in educational or occupational functioning, according to the same Neuropsychopharmacology article.
If frequent use is continued or adapted in adulthood, it can lead to issues of withdrawal, cannabis use disorders and impaired driving and car crashes, according to the same article.
A majority of adolescents use marijuana more than alcohol and prior to or same as cigarettes, according to a January 2019 Drug and Alcohol Dependence study published by ScienceDirect, a peer-reviewed publishing company.
According to the same study, high school seniors who reported getting drunk dropped from 53% in 2001 to 37% in 2016 and frequent cigarette use has dropped from one-third of all seniors to 5%.
While marijuana seems like a safer indulgent, the negative developmental risks can be a setback as children grow to adulthood.
We are currently in a time of change for America; marijuana has changed its image from a community-destroying drug to a safe and nonaddictive substance. Before the rush to fully embrace marijuana, researchers must look into the negative health effects of marijuana use in teens.
