Presentation for parents about facts they should know related to marijuana.

1. MARIJUANA:
FACTS PARENTS NEED TO KNOW
Kendra McLaughlin, MPH
Presentation for Parents at PAS@Accident
November 29, 2016

2. MARIJUANA:
Facts
Parents
Need
to
Know
Presentation Outline
• Marijuana Defined
• Did You Know?
• Is Marijuana Medicine?
• Is it Available in Maryland?
• Why Not Make it Legal like
Alcohol or Tobacco?
• Take Home Messages

3. What is marijuana?
• Marijuana is the most commonly abused illegal
drug.
• It is a dry, shredded green, brown or gray mix
of flowers, stems, seeds and leaves from the
hemp plant, Cannabis sativa.
• The main active chemical in marijuana is
delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinor, or THC for
short. This is the mind-altering,
psychoactive chemical in marijuana.
• Also referred to as pot, weed, Mary
Jane, grass

4. What is marijuana?
• Marijuana is usually smoked
• As a cigarette or “joint”
• In a pipe or water pipe (bong)
• In “blunts,” which are cigars that are hollowed out and refilled with a
mixture of marijuana and tobacco
• Marijuana can also be mixed in food (edibles)
• As an extract, marijuana is also available in various other
forms
Photos from:
http://kutv.com/news/local/study-teen-pot-use-increasing-in-colorado-after-legalization
https://sites.psu.edu/siowfa15/2015/09/17/does-smoking-marijuana-kill-braincells/

5. DID YOU KNOW

6. In the past 15 years, marijuana potency has tripled
and since 1960 it has grown 5 times stronger.
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
Average THC and CBD Levels in the US
THC CBD
CBD:
Non-Psychoactive
Ingredient
THC:
Psychoactive
Ingredient
Mehmedic et al., 2010
Did you know…

7. Did you know…
Marijuana can be addictive.
• 1 in 10 adults who try marijuana will become addicted to it
• 1 in 6 teens who try marijuana will become addicted to it
Hall W, Degenhardt L. Adverse health effects of non-medical cannabis use. Lancet. 2009;374:1383-1391. Photo from
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-30188527

8. Did you know…
Marijuana is unsafe if you are behind
the wheel.
• Compromises judgment and affects alertness,
concentration, coordination and reaction time.1
• Makes it difficult to judge distances and react to signals
and sounds on the road.1
• By itself, marijuana roughly doubles a driver’s chances of
being in an accident.2
1Ronen A, Gershon P, Drobiner H, et al. Effects of THC on driving performance, physiological state and subjective feelings relative to alcohol.
Accid Anal Prev. 2008; 40(3):926-934.
2M.Asbridge, JA Hayden, JL Cartwright. Acute Cannabis Consumption and motor vehicle collision risk: systematic review of observational
studies and meta-analysis. BMJ, 2012; 344(Feb 09)

9. Marijuana is associated with school
failure.
• Has negative effects on attention, motivation, memory and
learning that continue even after the drug’s immediate effects
wear off.
• Students who smoke marijuana tend to get lower grades and
are more likely to drop out of high school.
• People who begin using marijuana heavily as teens may
permanently lose an average of 8 points in IQ by mid-
adulthood.
Did you know…
Meier MH, Caspi A, Ambler A, et al. Persistent cannabis users show neuropsychological decline from childhood to midlife. Proc Natl
Acad Sci USA. 2012; 109:E2657-2664.

10. IS MARIJUANA MEDICINE?

11. • Currently 25 states and Washington, D.C. have legalized
marijuana for medical purposes, but the FDA, which
assesses safety and effectiveness of medications, has not
approved marijuana as medicine.
• There have not been enough large scale trials that show
that smoked marijuana’s benefits outweigh its many
potential health risks.
• Marijuana does have medical properties, BUT WE DON’T
NEED TO SMOKE OR EAT IT.
Is Marijuana Medicine?

12. • To be considered medicine by the FDA, a substance must
have a standardized dose with measurable ingredients.
• The marijuana leaf contains over 400 chemical
compounds which vary from plant to plant.
• There are medicines on the market that deliver the
benefits of marijuana without the dangers and
unpredictability of smoking marijuana. These are
marijuana-based pills that have been FDA approved –
Marinol and Cesamet
Is Marijuana Medicine?

13. IS MARIJUANA AVAILABLE
IN MARYLAND?

14. Medical Marijuana Law in Maryland
• MD became 21st state to legalize medical marijuana when
its first law passed in 2013.
• MD Medical Cannabis Regulations were adopted in
September 2015
• Maryland’s law is regulated by the MD Medical Cannabis
Commission.
• Regulations allow for 15 licensed growers in MD, no limit
on processors, and propose ≤ 2 per Senatorial district,
plus one per grower (potential of 109).
• Types of marijuana included in law are the dried form and
cannabis-infused products

15. Cannabis Concentrates and Cannabis-
Infused Products
Photos from:
http://forhighschoolcounselors.blogspot.com/2015/01/national-drug-fact-awareness-week.html
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/325174035572891485/
https://www.pinterest.com/heatherpadgett7/cannabis/
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16. Medical Marijuana Law in Maryland
• Qualifying patient can possess up to 4 ounces of dried
flower at one time or 36 grams of THC as an extract.
• MD patient can only get medical cannabis from MD
licensed dispensaries.
• MD dispensaries can only get their cannabis from MD
licensed growers and processors.
• MD dispensaries will not, at this time, recognize other
state medical cannabis ID cards.
• Certain conditions are to be present in order for physician
to certify patient for marijuana – end of life care, wasting
syndrome, severe/chronic pain, severe nausea, seizures,
glaucoma, PTSD

17. WHY NOT MAKE
MARIJUANA LEGAL LIKE
TOBACCO AND ALCOHOL?

18. TAKE HOME
MESSAGES

19. Take Home Messages
• Science has proven that marijuana is both addictive and
harmful to the human brain, especially when used as an
adolescent. Your brain knows that it wants more of the feeling
that marijuana offers.
• Marijuana may not cause overdose, but neither does tobacco.
In either case, you cannot deny the harmful effects of the
drug’s use.
• Marijuana contains medical properties, but we don’t have to
smoke it to get the benefits.
• Today’s marijuana is much more potent than the marijuana of
the 1960’s because of the increase in the THC content.
• Marijuana and driving do not mix. Marijuana affects your
reaction time and your judgment.

20. Things to Think About
• Most banks won’t take marijuana money because they
have to comply with federal regulations and marijuana is
federally illegal. This means that marijuana is a cash-only
business.
• Health insurers not required to cover marijuana; private
insurers may cover if they choose.
• Veterans should make sure that using marijuana will not
disqualify them from benefits.
• Maryland’s law does not prevent an employer from testing
for marijuana use and taking action against an employee
for a positive test.
• Subsidized housing authorities do not have to allow the
use of medical marijuana because of federal regulations.

21. CONTACT INFORMATION
Kendra McLaughlin
Kendra.mclaughlin@maryland.gov
301-334-7730