EXPERTS SAY TEEN USERS UNAWARE OF THE DANGERS OF TODAY'S MARIJUANA

In the 1970s, marijuana was the drug of choice for teens. It still is.
In Oklahoma, it ranks second to alcohol among substances abused by
teens.

Today's pot packs a bigger punch. Experts say it can be five times
more potent than the drug in use when baby boomers came of age. The
number of teens using marijuana hasn't changed much in the last
decade, but the number seeking help for addiction has increased.

A 2003 survey of Oklahoma high school students found that more than
one-third of female students and nearly half the male students had
tried marijuana. One in five females and one in four males had used
marijuana in the previous month.

Another study showed that about 63 percent of Oklahoma teens entering
treatment in 2002 listed marijuana as their primary substance of abuse.

Addicted Ben, a recent graduate of high school, said he started
drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana when he was 14.

It wasn't be-cause of peer pressure, he said. It was curiosity.

"It seemed like a good idea at the time," he said. "Within two months,
I was a daily user."

Ben said he became depressed and unmotivated. His grades plummeted as
he spent most of his time getting high on marijuana and "anything else
I could get my hands on."

"I've never met anyone who just smokes pot," he said. "Marijuana takes
down the stigma. Once that's gone it's like, why not?"

Ben overdosed his junior year on dextromethorphan, an ingredient in
some cough syrups that in heavy doses can produce hallucinations.

He was hospitalized, then spent five months in rehab. He says he stays
clean by attending Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and plans to attend
college in the fall.

"I almost died. It's not worth it at all," Ben said.

Recovery Experts say many teens don't recover from or "grow out of"
their addictions to marijuana and other drugs.

Early intervention and parental involvement are the keys to recovery,
said Dennis Lewelling, a clinical services director at the Norman
Alcohol and Drug Treatment Center.

"When kids start using, they tend to get separated from the rest of
the culture the non-drug-using culture so their development and social
skills are seriously delayed.

"So, by the time people are adults, it's pretty ingrained," Lewelling
said. "It becomes such a part of their life that they don't really
feel normal unless they are high."

Prevention Young people who know adults who use marijuana are more
likely to try the drug. But teens are less likely to try marijuana if
the adults in their life take a strong stand against drug use, experts
say.

Two-thirds of teens say the prospect of upsetting their parents or
losing the respect of family and friends is one of the main reasons
they don't use drugs.

The average age that teens try marijuana is 13, said Carol Falkowski,
director of research communications at the Hazelden Foundation, a
treatment organization based in Minneapolis.

She said many teens believe the drug is harmless because they are
bombarded by media messages.

Television programs like "That '70s Show," rap music videos and ad
campaigns for hemp products target teens and make marijuana seem cool,
she said. Teens also are confused by the debate over the medicinal use
of marijuana.

Potent pot "Marijuana is not a harmless substance. It can lead to
abuse and dependence just like any other drug," said Dr. Wilson
Compton, director of the epidemiology division of the National
Institute of Drug Abuse.

Compton conducted a study showing that marijuana dependence has
increased 20 percent in the past decade, while the number of users has
remained steady about 4 percent of the population.

New growing techniques have raised the levels of the mind-altering
chemical in the drug, intensifying the high and the damaging effects.

Marijuana can cause memory and learning problems, loss of
coordination, distorted perception of reality, reasoning difficulties,
increased heart rate, and, like cigarettes, an increased risk of
cancer and heart disease.

Compton said addicts continue using despite problems with school, work
or family, and must use increasingly more of the drug to get the same
high.

Marijuana users also are more likely to try other drugs, Lewelling said.

"It reduces the person's inhibitions. Since you are already using an
illegal drug, another illegal drug doesn't seem like that big of a
deal," he said.