Pot Gaining Teen Popularity, Perceived as Safe

Mary Jane is making a comeback. A new study conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor showed that marijuana use among teens is on the rise, despite a declining trend in alcohol and cigarette use. The study, which was funded by the National Institute of Health, surveyed over 46,000 students in the 8th, 10th and 12th grades.

While the trend for marijuana use had been on the decline since the 1990s, that trend is reversing. The study also showed an increase in abuse of prescription pain pills and over-the counter medicines for these youngsters.

Of the kids surveyed, pot smoking exceeded cigarette smoking over the past 30 days. Those admitting to smoking pot in the last 30 days were 8 percent of eight graders, 16.7 percent of 10th-graders and 21.4 percent of 12th-graders. This compares to figures for cigarette smoking of 7.1, 13.6, and 19.2 respectively.

Overall use of marijuana in 2010 was also up from 2009 for all three grades. While daily use of marijuana is still not as high as daily use of cigarettes, it too, increased across all three grades from just one year ago.

The Associated Press attributes the increased use of marijuana amongst teens to the national debate over legalizing medical marijuana. Legalization may cause youngsters to view the drug as safe. Drug abuse prevention experts agree, citing data showing that the growth in marijuana use is directly related to how dangerous teens perceive the drug to be.

And, according to Nora Volkow, Director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, weakened perceptions of a drug’s danger usually precede an increase in its use in the years to come. She also says that this same reasoning helps explain the increased abuse of prescription and over-the-counter drugs amongst adolescents. She contends that because prescription drugs are overly prescribed and backed by doctors, teens get the false impression that they are a ‘safe high.’

Of the prescription drugs abused by teens, OxyContin and Vicodin appear to continue to be a problem. Use of both drugs has even increased for 10th graders. Also on rise are drugs like Adderall, a treatment used for attention deficit disorder, and normal over-the-counter cough and cold medications.

Experts are calling for stiffer regulation of marijuana citing the success that new regulation of the tobacco industry has had on reducing teen smoking. Early use of marijuana can lead to dependency not just on marijuana, but other drugs as well. And, since young minds are still developing, they are especially susceptible to the ill effects of drugs such as memory loss and impaired learning ability. Drug-abuse prevention advocates suggest enlisting the help of parents and leaders to reshape the harmless image that marijuana holds for many young adults.