November 6, 2015 – Limiting Use

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Anchor lead:  What does the fact that about one in three people who try marijuana will experience problems with its use tell us?  Elizabeth Tracey reports

About one in three people who use marijuana will develop problematic use, a recent study reports.  While that number is about the same as that reported historically, since marijuana is more available, is often legal, and is stronger than ever before, this may add up to a big problem societally.  That’s according to Eric Strain, a drug abuse expert at Johns Hopkins.

Strain: We are making marijuana more available to the general population either through so-called medical marijuana or through casual use marijuana.  If we’re going to go in that direction then I think we need to be very aggressive with people letting them know about the consequences to its use, and we should also not make it readily available to everybody to use, just as we don’t make cigarettes readily available to everybody or alcohol readily available to everybody.   :29

Strain says the risks of many exposures to those whose brains are still developing, especially teenagers, are well known, so precautions are in order.  At Johns Hopkins, I’m Elizabeth Tracey.