Marijuana abuse among young teens is particularly disturbing for a variety of reasons. Among them is the fact that marijuana often serves as a gateway drug to harder drugs, and that this drug, which many mistakenly believe is safe to use, has a harmful effect on the developing mind.  For these reasons the findings of a survey that “Annual marijuana use increased for the second year in a row among 10th and 12th graders and for the third year in a row among 8th graders.” are particularly disturbing. If that wasn’t bad enough the survey found that the use of several other categories of drugs increased while anti-drug attitudes diminished accordingly.

Remarking on these findings NIDA Director Dr. Alan I. Leshner said, “Nonetheless, we must recognize that these [current] survey findings are disturbing because they show a continuing trend upward in drug use after a number of years in which that trend [teen marijuana abuse] was downward“.

If you believe that your teenager is engaging in marijuana abuse, or any kind of substance abuse whatsoever, it is imperative that you intervene as this time is when they develop habits that will last a lifetime.