Wood County Prevention Coalition
Uniting For A Drug-Free Community Since 2004
Newsletter for Dec 10, 2018 Vol. #4 Issue #18
Marijuana Use Rising Among Youth in Legalized States, New Study Finds
December 4, 2018 worcester.com
According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA) Colorado leads the country when it comes to first-time pot users among kids ages 12 to 17 years old.
"This is one in a long list of studies that proves Big Marijuana is targeting and subsequently harming our most vulnerable populations. Its profits-over-people business model is designed to hook people when they're most susceptible and make lifetime users out of them. When will we learn the marijuana industry isn't our friend, rather a social disease just like Big Tobacco was decades ago?” said Dr. Kevin Sabet, president and founder of Smart Approaches to Marijuana.
The Study
According to the study, in 2017, marijuana use among 12-17 year-olds was highest in Vermont (17.88%), followed by Oregon (17.01%).
Past month use of marijuana is noticeably greater in states that have legalized among those 12+ by 7.6%, 12-17 by 2.8%, and 18+ by 8.7%.
Washington, D.C. saw a significant increase among 12+ and 18+ year-olds reporting past month use in 2017, compared to 2016.
Washington saw a significant increase among 12+ and 18+ year-olds reporting both past month and year use in 2017, compared to 2016.
Stop the Vaping Epidemic
December 10, 2018
The vaping epidemic has spread from adult smokers looking for an alternative to cigarettes all the way down to middle schoolers trying to fit in. Nicotine addiction cannot persist, having already entrenched us in a public health crisis.
While a multitude of factors created this situation, the amount of anti-tobacco education children received in the third through fifth grades may have caused usage to increase, despite the intent to end teen smoking.
Adolescents are impressionable and relatively easy to convince when it comes to conveying important health information. Personally, my experience has only led me to hate two notable nicotine delivery methods: chewing tobacco and cigarettes.
I attribute this to the Drug Abuse Resistance Education-funded educational material that was given to me by the school’s guidance counselor.
This training critiqued marketing used by tobacco companies and the added ingredients that go into cigarettes such as tar and similar carcinogens. Admittedly, the only convenient means to ingest nicotine a decade ago was with these additives.
“My grandma was told by her doctor in Fairbanks, Alaska, in the 1960s that you need to smoke cigarettes to make your bones stronger,” said Zach Anders, a senior communication major.
The real failure of these lessons is that nicotine becomes viewed as a safe thing to ingest when compared to the other ingredients. Teens began vaping without fear, thinking it was a healthy way to get a nicotine rush.
Surgeon general: 'We all pay the price' for opioid epidemic
By Katie Lannan, Lowell Sun, Dec 7th, 2018
BOSTON -- In the roughly 20 minutes U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams spent addressing law enforcement and health care leaders in Boston Thursday morning, two Americans would die of opioid overdoses, he told the crowd gathered in a Harvard Medical School conference room.
"The truth is, whenever anyone, anywhere, is suffering from substance use disorder from the opioid epidemic, it's not just their problem," Adams said at the Police Assisted Recovery Initiative National Law Enforcement Summit. "We all pay the price."
Adams, who was appointed last year by President Donald Trump to the post that's often described as the nation's doctor, told the conference's roughly 400 attendees that his three focal points in fighting the opioid addiction are prevention, education and the use of the drug naloxone, all areas touched on in recent Massachusetts laws.
For Adams, an anesthesiologist who in his last post as Indiana's state health commissioner led efforts to respond to an HIV outbreak there among injection drug users, the education piece revolves around both highlighting the severity of the epidemic and breaking down stigma.
He urged the crowd to join him in efforts to reduce the stigma of addiction, both by asking people "how we can meet their needs" and sharing personal stories.
Adams said his brother is in prison "due to crimes he committed to support his addiction" and has never been offered medication-assisted addiction treatment.
"We grew up in a rural area. My brother had to have someone drive him to get his drugs when he was at home," Adams said.
Read more: http://www.lowellsun.com/todaysheadlines/ci_32316296/surgeon-general-we-all-pay-price-opioid-epidemic#ixzz5ZIcDr3Ep
Wood County Prevention Coalition Community Meeting
Friday, Mar 22, 2019, 08:30 AM
Wood County Educational Services, Research Drive, Bowling Green, OH, USA
RSVPs are enabled for this event.
About Us
Our Vision: Helping youth be drug-free, productive and responsible citizens.
Our Mission: We are a coalition of compassionate community members working together to coordinate high quality programs for the prevention of youth substance abuse in Wood County.
Email: mkarna@wcesc.org
Website: wcprevention.org
Location: 1867 Research Drive, Bowling Green, OH, United States
Phone: (419)-354-9010
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WCPCoalition
Twitter: @woodpccoalition