Under federal law, marijuana is illegal, but according to the Pew Research Center, as of April 2024, it’s legal in 24 U.S. states. In just a matter of time, other states may follow suit. Most Americans live in a state that has at least one dispensary in their county yet some states such as Nebraska, Idaho, Wyoming, Iowa, Kansas, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Texas only allow low THC, the psychoactive substance in marijuana, and CBD products derived from hemp which is a variety of the cannabis sativa plant that contains less than 0.3% THC.
Colorado and Washington State were the first states to allow the drug for recreational purposes. California was the first state in 1996 to legalize medical marijuana. President Biden has reclassified cannabis from a Schedule I drug such as heroin to a Schedule III substance, in the same category as Ketamine and Tylenol with Codeine, but is it totally safe?
Elizabeth Stuyt, Addiction MD, doesn’t think so. Marijuana “weed”, “pot,” whatever you want to call it, nowadays is much stronger than the marijuana of the 1960’s to 1980’s when the THC content was less than 2%. The marijuana of the old days used to be classified as a hallucinogen, not causing addiction because there was no identified withdrawal syndrome. Explains Dr. Stuyt of the National Library of Medicine now you have withdrawal syndrome which includes symptoms such as increased anger, irritability, depression, restlessness, headache, loss of appetite, insomnia. As much as 50% of those who use daily will become addicted. According to author Thao Nguyen of USA Today, 5/24/24, daily pot use now exceeds drinking in the United States.
THC may cause high blood pressure, fast heart beat, and is responsible for impairing reaction time when driving. If you combine alcohol with cannabis, you can increase your likelihood of a car accident. In an article entitled “ Police Race to learn who is driving High,” in The Wall Street Journal, by Julie Wernau, July 31, 2024, cops are giving oral-fluid tests to drivers who appear to be impaired. Much like a pregnancy test, the oral swab will give you a “yes” or “no” answer. However, it is more difficult than an immediate blood or urine sample because it only detects recent cannabis use.
Your may think your child is safe if his state has not legalized marijuana, but one in every five dispensaries in the United States are located within twenty miles of a state border. And 29% of these border dispensaries adjoin a neighboring state with permissive cannabis laws.
Wesley Cullen Davidson
Wesley Cullen Davidson is an award-winning freelance writer and journalist specializing in parenting. Currently, she is targeting her writing about recovery to parents whose children have substance abuse disorders.