Questions & Answers Surrounding Marijuana & Youth

Q.  Is marijuana widely used among teens?

A.  Every day, almost 5,000 American youths ages 12 to 17 try marijuana for the first time. More than 1 in 20 students in high school smoke marijuana on school property, according to the White House Office of National Drug Policy. An estimated 5.6 million Americans age 12 or older reported problems with illicit drug use in the past year alone, and more than 2 million met diagnostic criteria for dependence on marijuana.

Q.  Since "kids will be kids" isn't experimenting with marijuana harmless?

A.  While some kids may use pot once in a while and not all pot smokers become drug addicts, marijuana use, no matter how innocently it may begin, is a slippery slope which leads many kids to the abuse of other more destructive substances.  The number one gateway drug is marijuana.

Q.  Is marijuana addictive?

A.  There is disagreement as to whether pot smoking leads to addiction or to the use of other drugs.*  The Hazelton Foundation believes that marijuana itself can be addictive, physically and psychologically. Others do not agree, citing studies that compare marijuana users with compulsive video gamers.

*Regardless of which side of the argument you are on marijuana is illegal, impairs memory and judgement, and may have serious and permanent side effects. 

Q.  Is marijuana harmful to young people?

A.  Getting high impairs judgement, and that can lead to risky decision making. Getting high may also contribute to general apathy, irresponsible behavior, delayed reflexes and poor choices. Teens who use drugs are five times more likely to have sex than teens who do not use drugs. Marijuana affects motivation and can lead to significant health, social, learning and behavioral problems at a critical time in a young persons development.

Keeping and eye on what matters most ... your kids