Parents, experts worry about young brains on pot

First came a 2008 state referendum decriminalizing possession of small amounts of marijuana. Now, a citizens’ petition seeking medical allowances for the drug has some local school districts pushing back, worried such changes will continue to boost adolescent use and cause further misunderstanding among students and parents about addiction, brain development and other impacts. In Hopkinton, the schools’ Wellness Advisory Committee will hold a forum March 19 titled “The Truth About Marijuana.” Modeled after a similar session in Wayland last March, the presentation will feature a Middlesex County prosecutor, an alum who says his start with marijuana led him to other drugs and an addiction, and a doctor from Hopkinton’s Main Street Pediatrics. Residents from neighboring towns are also invited to attend. “It’s a public health issue, really,” Hopkinton Wellness Coordinator Danielle Petrucci said, referring to use among students. “It’s been a steady increase.” An anonymous survey sponsored by the MetroWest Health Foundation found that regular marijuana use among seventh- and eighth-grade respondents rose from 3 percent in 2006 to 3.3 percent in 2008, then fell to 2.2 percent two years later. But the number started at 20.2 percent in the region’s high schools in 2006, before climbing to 22.8 percent in 2008 and 23.5 percent in 2010. The most recent period saw the spike come mainly among male students. It also followed the referendum decriminalization the possession — but not the purchase — of an ounce or less of marijuana, a change in the law that many prevention specialists feel changed attitudes and has increased teen use. “What you’re doing is sending a clear message to the youth that this is not a dangerous drug,” said Dr. John Knight, director of the Center for Adolescent Substance Abuse Research at Children’s Hospital Boston. Knight questions whether marijuana users were getting locked up as frequently as decriminalization backers argued, and is critical of a new initiative sought for this November’s ballot. The petition seeks to provide patients with debilitating conditions such as cancer and AIDS the ability to secure medical marijuana through their doctor — despite an Institute of Medicine review questioning the efficacy. “Once you say the word medical, there’s a clear message that it’s safe and effective,” Knight said, arguing that the reverse is true for teens, and that the petition could lead to an increased supply for the larger market and even higher use by younger smokers. “I’m concerned because it sends a message to youth that it’s not like other drugs.” Next  » 1 | 2