Pubdate: Sun, 27 Mar 2016 Source: Chico Enterprise-Record (CA) Copyright: 2016 Chico Enterprise-Record Contact: http://www.chicoer.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/861 Note: Letters from newspaper's circulation area receive publishing priority Author: Robert H. Brewer MARIJUANA NOT AS HARMLESS AS SOME USERS MAINTAIN Your readers who still believe that marijuana is a harmless substance for human consumption should review the March 4 statement from the National Institutes of Health. The link to the release is: http://tinyurl.com/ht7vj8u. Marijuana use disorder is especially disturbing for young people with the onset peaking in late adolescence and early 20s, and the disorder is strongly associated with other substance abuse and mental health disorders. Mental disabilities associated with the disorder persist even after use of the drug stops. Any public belief that marijuana use is harmless is just not true, and the problem is not going away on its own. Our supervisors, law enforcement and other public officials need to have the latest information about this and not rely on self-serving proclamations by the cannabis growers that it is "harmless." - - Robert H. Brewer, Chico - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom