What you need to know to talk with your teen about marijuana
Selected Excerpts:
"Of the roughly 400 chemicals found in the cannabis plant, THC affects the brain the most."
What are the short-term effects of marijuana use?
"Short-term effects of marijuana include problems with memory and learning, distorted perception (sights, sounds, time, touch), trouble with thinking and problem solving, loss of motor coordination, increased heart rate and anxiety."
What are the potential long-term effects of marijuana use?
"If a teen is using pot as a coping method for anxiety, depression or stress, he is more likely to continue this behavior, because it works (and it works immediately). He gains instant relief and gratification. He may think, 'When I feel stressed out, I smoke pot and it relaxes me.' Instead of taking time to process and pot and it relaxes me.” Instead of taking time to process and deal with the feeling, he alters it by getting high, which in turn
stunts the emotional coping process. The teen’s stress tolerance is lowered, because he has not experienced the natural passing of the feeling, and he hasn’t found and used a healthy behavior — like sports, hanging out with a friend, playing music, talking to someone about how he feels or reading a book — to aid in coping with the pressure and stress he feels."
"Marijuana can increase risk of chronic cough, bronchitis and schizophrenia in vulnerable individuals. It also may increase risk of anxiety, depression and a series of attitude and personality changes. These changes can also include poor performance in school, eating and sleeping problems. Marijuana, just like any other drug, can lead to addiction."
Marijuana and the teen brain
"The parts of the adolescent brain which develop first are those that control physical coordination, emotion and motivation. However, the part of the brain which controls reasoning and impulses — known as the prefrontal cortex. This part of the brain does not fully mature until the age of 25.
It’s as if, while the other parts of the teen brain are shouting, the prefrontal cortex is not quite ready to play referee. This can have noticeable effects on teen behavior, such as:
• difficulty holding back or controlling emotions
• a preference for high-excitement and low-effort activities
• poor planning and judgment (rarely thinking of negative consequences)
•more risky, impulsive behaviors, including experimenting with drugs and alcohol
So during the adolescent years, your teen is especially susceptible to the negative effects of any and all drug use, including marijuana. Scientific evidence shows that marijuana use during the teen years could potentially lower a person’s IQ and interfere with other aspects of functioning and well-being.
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"Of the roughly 400 chemicals found in the cannabis plant, THC affects the brain the most."
What are the short-term effects of marijuana use?
"Short-term effects of marijuana include problems with memory and learning, distorted perception (sights, sounds, time, touch), trouble with thinking and problem solving, loss of motor coordination, increased heart rate and anxiety."
What are the potential long-term effects of marijuana use?
"If a teen is using pot as a coping method for anxiety, depression or stress, he is more likely to continue this behavior, because it works (and it works immediately). He gains instant relief and gratification. He may think, 'When I feel stressed out, I smoke pot and it relaxes me.' Instead of taking time to process and pot and it relaxes me.” Instead of taking time to process and deal with the feeling, he alters it by getting high, which in turn
stunts the emotional coping process. The teen’s stress tolerance is lowered, because he has not experienced the natural passing of the feeling, and he hasn’t found and used a healthy behavior — like sports, hanging out with a friend, playing music, talking to someone about how he feels or reading a book — to aid in coping with the pressure and stress he feels."
"Marijuana can increase risk of chronic cough, bronchitis and schizophrenia in vulnerable individuals. It also may increase risk of anxiety, depression and a series of attitude and personality changes. These changes can also include poor performance in school, eating and sleeping problems. Marijuana, just like any other drug, can lead to addiction."
Marijuana and the teen brain
"The parts of the adolescent brain which develop first are those that control physical coordination, emotion and motivation. However, the part of the brain which controls reasoning and impulses — known as the prefrontal cortex. This part of the brain does not fully mature until the age of 25.
It’s as if, while the other parts of the teen brain are shouting, the prefrontal cortex is not quite ready to play referee. This can have noticeable effects on teen behavior, such as:
• difficulty holding back or controlling emotions
• a preference for high-excitement and low-effort activities
• poor planning and judgment (rarely thinking of negative consequences)
•more risky, impulsive behaviors, including experimenting with drugs and alcohol
So during the adolescent years, your teen is especially susceptible to the negative effects of any and all drug use, including marijuana. Scientific evidence shows that marijuana use during the teen years could potentially lower a person’s IQ and interfere with other aspects of functioning and well-being.
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