Pubdate: Mon, 29 Aug 2016
Source: Toronto Star (CN ON)
Page: E5
Copyright: 2016 The Toronto Star
Contact:  http://www.thestar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/456
Author: Dr. Harold Kalant
Note: Dr. Harold Kalant is a professor emeritus of the University of 
Toronto's Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology. Doctors' Notes is 
a weekly column by members of the U of T Faculty of Medicine.

WHY LEGALIZING MARIJUANA IS THE WRONG THING TO DO

Decriminalize, but Keep in Mind the Drug's Effect on Kids

The federal government is planning to legalize marijuana, making it 
akin to alcohol and tobacco - a legal but regulated substance that's 
kept away from youth. The Task Force on Marijuana Legalization and 
Regulation is asking for your opinion on the best way to do this, and 
Monday is the last day to give your input.

I've studied the effects of drugs on health for many years - as well 
as how drug policy decisions affect use. And I think legalizing 
marijuana now will be bad for our kids' health.

Legalization is reasonable in theory, but if you take a closer look - 
both at our failure to curb underaged drinking and at early findings 
about marijuana use in places where it's been legalized - it raises 
troubling questions.

First of all, alcohol regulation is not the most reassuring model. 
Our attempts to prohibit underage drinking have been far from 
successful. A recent study found that 74 per cent of Grade 12 
students in Ontario report drinking alcohol in the past year - and 20 
per cent reported binge-drinking in the past month.

Just as we haven't figured out how to stop kids from drinking 
alcohol, we don't yet know how to deter them from smoking pot.

One thing that has been shown to help, however, is attitudes based on 
accurate knowledge about its health effects. Kids who are aware of 
health risks tend to avoid marijuana.

It being illegal also seems to deter at least some people. While we 
can't make any definitive conclusions yet, early figures in Colorado 
suggest marijuana use has gone up substantially after legalization.

But it hasn't gone up in places such as Australia, Portugal and 
certain states, where marijuana has been decriminalized but not 
legalized. This seems to show that most people are influenced by the 
fact that society deems the drug to be unsafe.

We have to remember that medical use and non-medical use are really 
separate issues.

Yes, marijuana has some medicinal properties, such as relief of pain, 
nausea and vomiting, and it has a legitimate place in health care - 
just as opiates, stimulants and many other drugs do. It can continue 
to be used as a prescription drug, even if we don't legalize 
non-medical use until we know how to keep it out of the hands of kids 
and teenagers.

One of the most disturbing effects of marijuana is its actions on 
kids' developing brains. In a major study in New Zealand, researchers 
followed over 1,000 newborns through childhood, adolescence and into 
middle age. Those who started smoking marijuana early, at around 12 
years old, and continued the habit into their adult years had a 
decreased IQ later in life. The same effect was not found for those 
who started using the drug as adults.

We've found similar results in experimental studies in the lab. 
Cannabis prevents nerve pathways from maturing in areas of the brain 
known to be involved in "executive functioning." This maturing 
process occurs in adolescent years, and helps with planning, 
reasoning, problem solving and decision-making.

In the New Zealand study, this was reflected among the early users in 
poor school performance, higher dropout rates and reduced career 
achievement - even when controlled for socioeconomic status and other 
potential confounding factors.

To me, this is the most worrisome risk of marijuana.

We can still use and study marijuana as medication. We can 
decriminalize possession, to reduce the social harm suffered by those 
convicted for possession, while watching carefully what happens in 
places that have already legalized. The government would stand to 
benefit from increased tax revenue by legalizing sale.

But if legalization threatens to increase marijuana use among 
adolescents, the group most at risk of long-term harm, that should 
give us pause.

To find out more about the government's plans to legalize marijuana 
and to give your input (the deadline is Monday), go to bit.ly/297HjGD.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom