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| Credit: Morguefile |
A new report
shows more teenagers are using marijuana on a regular basis that researchers
say is a cause for concern. According to this year's survey, most teens don’t think
smoking pot is harmful.
Results of
the 2012 “Monitoring the Future survey” found that 6.5 percent of 8th,
10th and 12th graders smoke marijuana daily, which is an
increase from 5.1 percent reported in 2007.
This year’s
survey included 45,449 students from 395 public and private schools. The study
was conducted by the University of Michigan.
According to
the results, 23 percent of teens said they had used marijuana in the month
prior to the survey. Thirty-six percent reported smoking pot within the
previous year.
More than 11 percent
of students in the 8th grade reported they used pot within the last
year. Twenty-eight percent of 10th grade students reported smoking marijuana
within the past year; 3.5% answered that they smoke daily.
The concern
is that most teenagers don’t see marijuana as harmful. Researchers say smoking
pot can lead to poor academic achievement and rob adolescents of other aspects
of their life. Viewing pot as harmless means teen marijuana use will likely escalate.
NIDA Director Nora D. Volkow, M.D. "THC, a key ingredient in
marijuana, alters the ability of the hippocampus, a brain area related to
learning and memory, to communicate effectively with other brain regions. In
addition, we know from recent research that marijuana use that begins during
adolescence can lower IQ and impair other measures of mental function into
adulthood."
Volkow points out that studies clearly show teen marijuana use can interfere
with “cognitive
abilities, social life, and career status” in
addition to mental health. She says marijuana can become addictive and the risk
increases with earlier use in life.
Gil Kerlikowske, director of National Drug Control Policy suggested in a
press release that parents and other adults can help curb escalating use of
marijuana among adolescents with open dialogue.
The study also looked at teen use of tobacco and alcohol and
prescription drugs. Vicodin, an opiate pain killer was used for non-medical
issues by 7.5 percent of teens surveyed, which is a ‘modest decline’ from 10
percent found in 2010.
Tobacco use also declined from previous surveys, though non-cigarette
tobacco products are still a concern, said Howard K. Koh, M.D., M.P.H., assistant secretary for
health for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in the CDC
media release.
Illicit drug
use declined among teens, with the exception of marijuana. The reason reported is
because adolescents don’t think pot is harmful. But the finding doesn't address other underlying factors that might contribute to higher use than in the past. There has also been an increase in stimulants taken by teens. Adderral use is up from 5.4% in 2009 to 7.5 percent in 2012. The drug is used to treat attention deficit disorder and is also a cause of concern.
Source:
December, 2012
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