Posted on 07/09/2019 7:56:23 AM PDT by luv2ski
Legalizing pot does not appear to encourage teen use and might actually discourage it, a study published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics suggests.
Researchers analyzed data from more than 1.4 million high school students between 1993 and 2017, collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for its Youth Risk Behavior survey. The results show teen pot use both before and after medical marijuana laws were adopted in 27 states, seven of which also legalized recreational marijuana during the survey period.
Teen marijuana use didn’t change much after medical marijuana was legalized, they found. In states that legalized recreational use, the number of teens who said they smoked pot in the previous 30 days dropped 8% while the number who used it 10 or more times fell by 9%.
One theory floated by the study’s authors was that teens may find it more difficult to access marijuana if drug dealers are replaced by licensed dispensaries that require proof of age, possibly contributing to the decrease.
Eleven states and the District of Columbia have now legalized recreational use of marijuana, while 34 states permit medical use. Some worry normalizing pot will give young people the impression that marijuana is harmless. Plus, they worry that selling pot at dispensaries will make it easy for young people to access the drug.
The study estimates an association between legalization and teen use, not causation, meaning the study does not show conclusively that legalizing pot causes a decrease in teen use. Still, the findings are consistent with similar research that suggests teens might smoke less pot in states where medical or recreational marijuana is legal.
The study was conducted by D. Mark Anderson of Montana State University, Benjamin Hansen of the University of Oregon, Daniel Rees of the University of Colorado Denver and Joseph Sabia of San Diego State University. The research was funded by grants from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health and the Charles Koch Foundation.
Though generally aligned with Republicans, the Koch brothers have split with the party on marijuana and some other issues. The powerful libertarian donors support states legalizing pot and criticize federal attempts to thwart local laws.
It’s no longer cool or special since grandma can go down the block and buy it.
Pot will soon be just plant with no mystery again. Something old people use for their aches and anxiety. Exactly as it was for thousands of years.
Of course it can get you “high” but so can cough syrup and benadryl. It’s lame to get high from something so mainstream that babies and grandmas use it
Well, that might just be true...in Bizarro World.
Why stop there? Legalize murder.
It just goes to show, those who choose to smoke pot, will.
In the age of universal availability, legalization makes no difference whatsoever. Contrary to the statistically unexplained, and insignificant, drop in teen usage the authors point out.
“Colorado shows that legalization leads to skyrocketing use among youth.”
Official data from Colorado says otherwise.
They survey kids in school every 1-2 years starting the 8th grade.
Just like handing out condoms reduces promiscuity.
“they worry that selling pot at dispensaries will make it easy for young people to access the drug”
The easiest place in the US to get pot (where it is illegal) is a high school. Young people do not have any problem getting access to it.
Right, those infamous pro-pot activists the Koch brothers and the National Institute of Health.
Yep. Everybody and their mother has already tried pot in the U.S.A. They already know whether they like it or not, and the ones that like it are smoking it whether it’s legal or not. The ones that don’t like it are not likely to suddenly start smoking even if it’s available over the counter at the QVC.
“Let’s legalize drunk driving...”
Or we could ban firearms since some people won’t use them responsibly if they are legal.
Stupid arguments are stupid even if right wingers make them.
Anyone who believes this is deluded.
>> Right, those infamous pro-pot activists the Koch brothers <<
Yes, the Koch brothers ARE pro-pot activists.
https://news.kochind.com/news/2018/keep-local-marijuana-laws-from-going-up-in-smoke
Ah thanks ... I remember it was an election year ... time is going faster the older I get lol ...
Naturally - that's why teens have been reporting since well before any state legalized that they could get marijuana almost as easily as beer or cigarettes, even though the latter two are far more popular among adults.
Funny/sad how the FR Reefer Madness faction dismisses the facts and logic here merely because the conclusion contradicts their presuppositions.
Well, you learn something new every day.
Beware studies funded by activists.
JAMA became left wing about 2 decades ago and becomes more left wing each day.
Also funny/sad that this sort of caveat rarely appears in articles about harms associated with marijuana.
Legalizing pot has resulted in unwanted contact highs in people who are trying to mind their own business on city streets.
Yes, somehow we didn’t have too much of a problem before government decided to ban it.
Prohibition didn’t work for alcohol and it isn’t working with drugs.
Prohibition was and is a Progressive idea, not a conservative one.
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