SEEKING ANSWERS ON TEENS AND POT

More research is needed on the effect the growing medical marijuana
industry is having on teenage attitudes and usage.

In the aftermath of Colorado's disorganized experiment with medical
marijuana, questions have arisen about whether it is getting into the
hands of teenagers and how it is affecting their attitudes about the drug.

It would be a public service, we think, for researchers to look into
what we see as the potential spillover effect of a burgeoning medical
marijuana industry. Such information would be useful given what seems
to be a softening of attitudes toward marijuana legalization.

U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, D-Boulder, recently said he plans to propose a
change in federal law that would decriminalize marijuana so states
could be free to treat medical marijuana as they see fit. Such a move
would remove the conflict that states experience as they have tried
to allow marijuana for medical uses.

That medical marijuana is legal at the state level but illegal at the
federal level has been cause for consternation, even though the Obama
administration has publicly stated it will not interfere with pot
programs operating legally under state rules.

Still, we believe it's important to establish whether Colorado's
medical marijuana system is directly affecting use among teenagers.
Anecdotally, there seems to be evidence to support posing the question.

In a Denver Post story by John Ingold, a doctor who runs a substance
abuse clinic at Denver Health Medical Center said he has seen a
nexus. Christian Thurstone said substance abuse referrals for
marijuana have tripled since mid-2009, which is when the state's
medical marijuana system spiraled out of control with dispensaries
popping up overnight like mushrooms.

Thurstone surveyed the 76 teens in his program and found 60 knew
someone with a medical marijuana card, and 37 said they obtained
marijuana from someone with a card.

Furthermore, those young people who got marijuana from a medical
marijuana cardholder were more likely to be frequent users. Thurstone
told The Post he intends to apply for federal funding to study the
issue further, and we think that's a good idea.

There isn't much research out there examining the potential link
between state medical marijuana programs and marijuana use in
general, particularly in different age brackets.

While The Post has supported legalization, we don't support legal use
for children. Our objections include the fact that there are serious
questions about the detrimental effects marijuana has on developing
adolescent minds.

We have long thought the federal government should sponsor more and
better research into the efficacy of marijuana in treating a variety
of medical conditions, but it also would be a service for Thurstone
and others to look carefully at how Colorado's evolving medical
marijuana system is contributing - or not - to use among adolescents.

Such research would be an invaluable addition to public policy debate
concerning the legal use of marijuana.