On March 27, 2023, five members of the Moline City Council voted to approve Moline’s second marijuana dispensary. Two Aldermen, Mike Waldron and Scott Williams, voted “NO.” Waldron quoted as saying, “I don’t believe we need one; we certainly don’t need two!” Those who voted affirmatively, justified their votes saying, that they “appreciated the extra tax revenue.” (3% of revenues will go into the city’s general fund.)
While use and possession still remains illegal under federal law, as of September 2022, 37 states and the District of Columbia allow the medical use of marijuana; 19 states and the DC have legalized recreational use.
But whether the use of marijuana is legal or not in Moline, or whether Moline will receive extra tax dollars, really misses the point.
In a long article in the Frontiers of Psychiatry, dated Jan. 5, captured U.S. trends in the association of suicide ideation/behaviors with marijuana use among adolescents ages 12–17 and differences by gender and race/ethnicity, by Flores, Granados and Lê Cook, issues of far greater consequence are discussed.
Their paper is written against this background: “In the U.S. over the past decade, there has been a steady increase in marijuana use rates among adolescents, in part due to marijuana legalization laws. It is unknown whether these greater marijuana use rates are associated with rising rates of adolescent suicide ideation and behaviors (plan and attempt) or whether these associations differ by gender or race/ethnicity.”
The object of their study was “To determine whether marijuana use is associated with suicide ideation/behaviors among adolescents and if differences exist by gender and race/ethnicity.”
The discussion and conclusions of the paper strongly suggest great caution is in order.
“Using nationally representative data, our findings demonstrated that past-year marijuana use is a significant risk factor for suicide ideation/behavior among adolescents.
“This finding was consistent among males and females, as well as adolescents identifying as white, Black, Latinx, and NA/AN.
“We also found that rates of suicide ideation/behavior increased as the frequency (number of days) of marijuana use increased.
"While prior literature has found gender, race/ethnicity, and marijuana use to be independent factors associated with suicide ideation/behavior among adolescents, our study is one of the first to use a nationally representative sample of adolescents to examine associations between suicide ideation/behavior and marijuana use and how these associations differ by gender and race/ethnicity.
"Marijuana use, which we found to be associated with higher rates of suicide ideation/behavior, is influenced by a multitude of factors, including supply side factors such as availability, price and potency. Marijuana has become more widely available via recreational use legislation.
“Increased marijuana availability may result in adolescents initiating or increasing their recreational use.
"In an analysis of a national, annually administrated cross-sectional survey, “Cerda and (his) colleagues found marijuana prevalence rates among eighth and 10th graders in the state of Washington increased when comparing marijuana use rates before and after legalization.
“The state (Washington) saw an increase in the prevalence of habitual marijuana users and a decrease in the prevalence of non-users.
“With legalization, the stigma of marijuana use may dissipate and elevate the social acceptability, which can lower the perceived risks associated with marijuana use.
“As such, adolescents living in states with legalized recreational marijuana legislation for adults may initiate or increase their use without fully considering consequences (e.g., elevated risk of psychosis and impacts of brain development associated with adolescent marijuana use).
“The decreasing price of marijuana may also contribute to increasing use among adolescents and help to further explain our research findings.
“As markets, both legal and illegal, compete for customers, there has been a proliferation of potent marijuana products, which may have severe consequences for adolescents.
“The levels of 19-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the content that gives marijuana its euphoric effects, have significantly increased over the past several decades.
“THC is associated with acute increases in heart rate, various types of arrhythmias, coronary vasospasm, and acute myocardial infarction.
“As marijuana potency has increased, there may be a parallel escalation in mental health-related events. Work by Di Forti and (his) colleagues found daily adult (18–64) use of high potency marijuana, defined as THC 10% or greater, was associated with five-times the odds of having a psychotic disorder, relative to no use.
"Researchers determined that eliminating high potency marijuana would contribute to a 12% decrease in the number of first-episode psychosis cases. This is of critical importance as psychosis is a predictor of suicidal behavior.
“A systematic review and meta-analysis of 10 general population cohort studies found individuals with a psychotic experience had higher odds of suicidal ideation, plan, attempt, and suicidal death.
While not yet conclusive, the studies to date clearly suggest that daily adult use of high potency marijuana increases fivefold the chances of having a psychotic disorder, and that psychosis is a predictor of suicidal behavior.
“We also found that rates of suicide ideation/behavior increased as the frequency (number of days) of marijuana use increased.
"While prior literature has found gender, race/ethnicity, and marijuana use to be independent factors associated with suicide ideation/behavior among adolescents, our study is one of the first to use a nationally representative sample of adolescents to examine associations between suicide ideation/behavior and marijuana use and how these associations differ by gender and race/ethnicity.
"Marijuana use, which we found to be associated with higher rates of suicide ideation/behavior, is influenced by a multitude of factors, including supply side factors such as availability, price and potency. Marijuana has become more widely available via recreational use legislation.
“Increased marijuana availability may result in adolescents initiating or increasing their recreational use.
"In an analysis of a national, annually administrated cross-sectional survey, “Cerda and (his) colleagues found marijuana prevalence rates among eighth and 10th graders in the state of Washington increased when comparing marijuana use rates before and after legalization.
“The state (Washington) saw an increase in the prevalence of habitual marijuana users and a decrease in the prevalence of non-users.
“With legalization, the stigma of marijuana use may dissipate and elevate the social acceptability, which can lower the perceived risks associated with marijuana use.
“As such, adolescents living in states with legalized recreational marijuana legislation for adults may initiate or increase their use without fully considering consequences (e.g., elevated risk of psychosis and impacts of brain development associated with adolescent marijuana use).
“The decreasing price of marijuana may also contribute to increasing use among adolescents and help to further explain our research findings.
“As markets, both legal and illegal, compete for customers, there has been a proliferation of potent marijuana products, which may have severe consequences for adolescents.
“The levels of 19-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the content that gives marijuana its euphoric effects, have significantly increased over the past several decades.
“THC is associated with acute increases in heart rate, various types of arrhythmias, coronary vasospasm, and acute myocardial infarction.
“As marijuana potency has increased, there may be a parallel escalation in mental health-related events. Work by Di Forti and (his) colleagues found daily adult (18–64) use of high potency marijuana, defined as THC 10% or greater, was associated with five-times the odds of having a psychotic disorder, relative to no use.
"Researchers determined that eliminating high potency marijuana would contribute to a 12% decrease in the number of first-episode psychosis cases. This is of critical importance as psychosis is a predictor of suicidal behavior.
“A systematic review and meta-analysis of 10 general population cohort studies found individuals with a psychotic experience had higher odds of suicidal ideation, plan, attempt, and suicidal death.
While not yet conclusive, the studies to date clearly suggest that daily adult use of high potency marijuana increases fivefold the chances of having a psychotic disorder, and that psychosis is a predictor of suicidal behavior.
First Published in the Moline Dispatch and Rock Island Argus on April 2, 2023.
Copyright 2023, John Donald O'Shea
Copyright 2023, John Donald O'Shea
No comments:
Post a Comment