Guy Bentley
Closeup of marijuana joint and buds on a checkerboard table with (Shutterstock/Wollertz)
The
number of teens using and suffering from problems related to marijuana
is falling at the same time more states are legalizing marijuana.
A study of more than 216,000 teens from across the country indicated a substantial fall in problems related to marijuana use.
Published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry,
the research shows teen marijuana use dropped 10 percent between 2002
and 2013, despite a string of states decriminalizing and legalizing
weed, although the number of adults using has increased.
The research team from Washington University School of Medicine in
St. Louis examined data on drug use over a 12-year time horizon for
teens ages 12-17. Teens suffering from marijuana dependency or having
trouble at school and in relationships plummeted by 24 percent over this
period.
The number of teens who admitted using marijuana in the past 12
months was also lower in 2013 than it had been in 2002, falling by 10
percent. Fighting, crimes against property and selling drugs were also
down.
“We were surprised to see substantial declines in marijuana use and
abuse,” said the study’s author Richard A. Grucza, Ph.D., an associate
professor of psychiatry. “We don’t know how legalization is affecting
young marijuana users, but it could be that many kids with behavioral
problems are more likely to get treatment earlier in childhood, making
them less likely to turn to pot during adolescence.
But whatever is
happening with these behavioral issues, it seems to be outweighing any
effects of marijuana decriminalization.”
“We don’t know how legalization is affecting young marijuana users,
but it could be that many kids with behavioral problems are more likely
to get treatment earlier in childhood, making them less likely to turn
to pot during adolescence. But whatever is happening with these
behavioral issues, it seems to be outweighing any effects of marijuana
decriminalization.”
Grucza gathered the data as part of a confidential, computerized
study called the National Survey on Drug Use and Health. “Other research
shows that psychiatric disorders earlier in childhood are strong
predictors of marijuana use later on,” Grucza said.
“So it’s likely that if these disruptive behaviors are recognized
earlier in life, we may be able to deliver therapies that will help
prevent marijuana problems — and possibly problems with alcohol and
other drugs, too.”
