Pubdate: Sun, 22 Dec 2013
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2013 The Denver Post Corp
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Page: 3D

IS HIGHER POT USE BY TEENS A MYTH?

Fears of teenage marijuana use increasing as Colorado liberalizes its
cannabis laws are well understood though not quite so well founded.

Last week, the National Institute on Drug Abuse called out Colorado
when it released its annual report that found increased use among the
nation's eighth-, 10th- and 12th-graders over a five-year period.

Colorado and Washington state are conducting a "large national
experiment (that) portends a very difficult time" for drug-abuse
control, said Gil Kerlikowske, director of the Office of National Drug
Control Policy.

Kerlikowske also dinged state regulators for allegedly failing to keep
pot out of teens' hands, citing audits that have been critical of 
regulation.

But those audits focused largely on problems of licensing, mismanaged
budgets and lax oversight. Neither the two audits of the state's
system nor the audit of Denver's operations discussed youth access.

Also, when looking at the three-year trend in the report, marijuana
use among the three grades was relatively unchanged. For example,
12th-grader use in the past month was 22.7 percent in 2013 compared to
22.6 percent in 2011.

Those are national figures. Why single out Colorado and
Washington?

Plenty of anecdotes abound about how today's teens are getting higher
because of marijuana's ubiquitous presence in Colorado's culture.

Few reports, though, can quantify a problem. One from the Colorado
Department of Education says 32 percent of 720 expelled students in
2012-13 were ousted for "marijuana-related behavior." But the report
is the first time the state has separated out marijuana.

If anecdotes about increased teen pot use prove to be true, it would
be concerning on a number of levels, including purported damage the
drug can do to the developing brain. For that matter, juvenile access
to weed could invite the feds to end Colorado's "experiment."

So far, however, statistics have shown no link between legalization
and increased use.

An analysis of data from 1993 to 2009 by economists at three
universities looked at marijuana use in 13 states, including Colorado
and Washington, and found no increased teen consumption.

We are eager to see the biannual youth risk behavior survey from the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that looks at drug use,
among other things.

The 2011 survey of Colorado kids showed a decrease in use from 2009.
The 2013 results will be released in the spring, and will likely
provide clearer answers to this vexing issue.
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MAP posted-by: Matt