Marijuana - Data & Facts

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HCC wants you to know the facts about marijuana and the potential harm that it could cause to youth physical and mental health development. Please read on for more information.

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Risks of Marijuana Use

• Youth who use marijuana before the age of 18 have a 1 in 6 chance of developing a cannabis use disorder. 
• Smoking or vaping THC extracts (a.k.a. dabbing) can be so potent that some could have a reaction that requires them to be taken to the Emergency Room.
• Academic performance and achievement can be negatively impacted by youth marijuana use.  In fact, youth who use marijuana could lose up to 8 IQ points that they will never get back.  Youth who use marijuana are also at an increased risk for unexcused school absences.
• Youth marijuana use is linked to depression, anxiety, psychosis, and suicidal thoughts or behaviors.

Culture & Marketing

• The marijuana industry is replacing the tobacco industry in aggressive marketing to youth.  From edibles that look like candy to backpacks with cartoon characters that are advertised to have “stash pockets” – these are similar tactics used by the tobacco industry years ago. 
• There is an entire “culture” surrounding marijuana that adults need to be aware of because it is much different than what they are familiar with.  Many will be familiar with “420” but today “710” is popular in marijuana culture.  710 spells oil upside down – as in hash oil or dabs.

Local Data

One of the primary goals of HCC is to reduce youth substance use.  With that goal each year we set specific and measurable objectives.  In 2021, one of our objectives was:

By October 2022, reduce overall past 30-day use of marijuana of students in grades 6-12 in Cattaraugus County School Districts by 3% from 14.3% to 11.3% as evidenced in the Prevention Needs Assessment Survey.

As this chart shows, that objective of 3% was exceeded.  Reported past 30-day marijuana used decreased by an overall 4.9%.
While this measure is a promising trend as the data is going in the right direction, there is still cause for concern as evidenced by the following chart.
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As this chart shows, less than half of students feel that regular marijuana use is risky or harmful.  Although we saw a 3.2% increase in the measure, it is an area where we must provide more education and outreach to students on the dangers of youth marijuana use.  

​We do know that parents are the biggest protective factor in their children’s lives and the 2021 data shows that 86.7% of students feel that their parents would disapprove of them using marijuana.  Having positive peer groups is also important and 74.2% of students feel that their peers would disapprove of marijuana use. 

References:
Bach Harrison (2021) Cattaraugus County Prevention Needs Assessment Survey
https://teens.drugabuse.gov/drug-facts/marijuana#topic-5
https://www.samhsa.gov/marijuana