Risks of Edibles and ‘JUULing’ are Real

What parents need to know - Dodge City Public School Administrators are gravely concerned with the growing number of adolescents including elementary students that are experimenting with edibles and vaping.

It is crucial for parents and educators to work together to ensure a drug-free environment.

According to the CDC:  The teen years are a time of rapid growth, exploration, and onset of risk-taking. Taking risks with new behaviors provides kids and teens the opportunity to test their skills and abilities and discover who they are. However, some risk behaviors—such as using marijuana—can have harmful and long-lasting effects on a teen’s health and well-being.

Marijuana and the teen brain

Unlike adults, the teen brain is actively developing and often is not fully developed until the mid-20s. Marijuana use during this period may harm the developing teen brain. Marijuana use in adolescence or early adulthood can have a serious impact on a teen’s life.

Negative effects on school and social life

• Decline in school performance. Students who smoke marijuana may get lower grades and may be more likely to drop out of high school than their peers who do not use.
• Increased risk of mental health issues. Marijuana use has been linked to a range of mental health problems in teens such as depression or anxiety.  Psychosis has been seen in teens at higher risk like those with a family history.
• Impaired driving. Driving while impaired by any substance, including marijuana, is dangerous. Marijuana negatively affects a number of skills required for safe driving, such as reaction time, coordination, and concentration.
• Potential for addiction. Research shows that about 1 in 6 teens who repeatedly use marijuana can become addicted, which means that they may make unsuccessful efforts to quit using marijuana or may give up important activities with friends and family in favor of using marijuana.  (Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)

Taken in large doses, marijuana edibles can lead to anxiety attacks, paranoia and hallucinations.  Several case reports involving kids who took edibles found that respiratory insufficiency could also be a major side effect in young children. (DrugAbuse.com)

Marijuana edible gummies
JUULing more addictive than e-cigarette products
JUUL, a popular brand of e-cigarette is shaped like a small, sleek USB drive – easy to use and easy to conceal.  “High –school and middle-school students love its shape and ease of use and enjoy flavors such as mango, fruit medley and cool cucumber.”  (Source:  AAFP, Douglas Kamerow, M.D., M.P.H)

Kids like the flavors and trade them back and forth, as the e-juice pods are removable.

JUUL has higher nicotine concentrate, so it may be more addictive than other e-cigarette products. A recent study found 63 percent of JUUL users’ ages 15-24 did not realize the device contained any nicotine, so they would not be aware that they were inhaling an addictive chemical.

(Source: https://www.aafp.org/news/health-of-the-public/20180806juul.html)

Even more troubling is the access to e-juice pods that are laced with THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol – the chemical responsible for most of marijuana’s psychological effects. THC can induce hallucinations, change thinking and cause delusions. On average, the effects last about two hours, and kick in 10 to 30 minutes after ingestion. Psychomotor impairment may continue after the perceived high has stopped,

Placing school safety high on the educational agenda: Such a priority involves making a personal and community commitment toward creating a safe, welcoming, respectful, drug-free school.  Dodge City Public School Administrators are coordinating efforts with local law enforcement to ensure a drug-free environment.  Together we can make a positive difference in quality of life for our community, and the children that we serve.

More resources:
Click here for more information on What Parents Need to Know.

Click here for for more information on Facts about Marijuana Edibles

Click here for more information on JUULING

Click here for more information on Marijuana Use in Teens

For more information on how you can get involved, contact the Public Information office at 620-370-1000.