Pubdate: Thu, 10 May 2012 Source: Westside Gazette (FL) Copyright: 2012 Westside Gazette Contact: http://www.thewestsidegazette.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5308 Pubdate: 10 May 12 Author: Calvina Fey NEW STUDY FINDS TEEN MARIJUANA USE ON THE RISE All Progress in the Reduction of Teen Marijuana Use Has Been Lost ST. PETERSBURG FL - The 2010 Partnership Attitude Tracking Study released by the Partnership at Drugfree_org and Met Life, demonstrated significant increases in teen marijuana use. The findings showed that teens were significantly more likely to use marijuana in 2010 than they were in 2008. Forty-nine percent reported lifetime trial of marijuana and thirty-nine percent reported past year use. Twenty-five percent reported smoking marijuana in the past month, which translates to over four million 9th- 12th graders smoking marijuana in the past month. "The increased use of marijuana among youth has been an alarming trend for the last couple of years," said Calvina Fay, Executive Director of Drug Free America Foundation and Save Our Society Frdm Drugs. "Research has shown that marijuana impairs adolescent brain development, so this trend is extremely disturbing, especially with respect to the future. Marijuana is also known to exacerbate mental illness, which typically presents itself in late adolescence," Fay added. "Although it may seem like we have lost progress, we must continue to push back against the likely causation of this increase. The ruse that marijuana is a medicine has created a false sense that this addictive, dangerous drug is not harmful, but in fact helpful. We must also continue to push forward with prevention efforts and hope the government will increase drug prevention resources," Fay concluded. Based on the responses to this survey, the report suggests that a significant subgroup of teens may be at risk for developing later alcohol and drug problems. The report also indicates that it is critical to target those teens who display early warning signs of drug use and abuse so that we may stop the progression of alcohol and drug use among our children. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom