WE NEED TO INFORM OUR YOUNG PEOPLE ABOUT POT DANGERS

According to Sen. Larry Campbell, pot possession should result in a
fine, not a criminal record. And though the former Vancouver mayor
says he himself has never smoked marijuana, he has every right to his opinion.

Whether or not British Columbians agree with him, however, they
should be aware of the dangers associated with marijuana use -- and
of the risks they run in putting their faith in those involved in
B.C.'s multi-billion-dollar pot industry.

After all, the main issue for parents is not so much whether
marijuana should be decriminalized, or even legalized, but whether it
will harm their children's health -- as tobacco clearly does.

And young British Columbians themselves have to ask: How much less
harmful is it to smoke marijuana than regular cigarettes?

According to research into long-term pot use released yesterday,
smoking a single joint causes the same amount of lung damage as
between 2 1/2 and five tobacco cigarettes. That seems to be because
pot smokers tend to inhale more deeply and hold the smoke in longer.
Also, joints typically do not have filters.

The three-year study by New Zealand's Medical Research Institute
found that long-time pot smokers develop the same kind of wheezing
and other asthmatic symptoms as smokers do.

This worrying study follows on the heels of an even more disturbing
one by British researchers, published in the prestigious medical
journal The Lancet. It shows marijuana use seems to increase one's
chances of developing a psychotic disorder, such as schizophrenia, by
as much as 200 per cent.

Now, it pays to be cautious about the findings of all studies, which
tend to reflect the biases of those doing them.

But editors at The Lancet have clearly changed their mind about the
dangers of marijuana. In 1995, they said that smoking pot, even over
the long term, was not harmful to health. Now they have concluded it
"could increase the risk of psychotic illness."

In any event, marijuana use in Canada is now reported to be the
highest in the industrialized world. And many young Canadians -- who,
like their hippie-era parents, consider marijuana smoking to be cool
- -- seem to be comfortable with the legal dangers in taking the drug
and buying it from those involved in criminal enterprise.

However, they should also know that, judging by an increasing number
of apparently well-researched studies, they are seriously risking
their mental and physical health as well.