We recently hosted Dr. John Searles to share data on teens and cannabis and help answer the question “how are youth impacted by marijuana?” With retail cannabis coming to our region, it’s important that we help youth, parents, and the broader community to understand the impacts of marijuana on our student populations. When we understand the impacts, we can take steps to intervene and reduce the risks for our children and youth. You can view the recording below or at Green Mountain Access Television.
Why is this important?
- Vermont is at the top of the national rankings for last 30-day use of cannabis and alcohol among youth ages 12 -17, young adults, and adults.
- Lamoille County is a few percentage points higher for both last 30-day alcohol and cannabis use than the State.
- Lamoille County Youth are using cannabis and alcohol before the age of 13 at higher than state average rates.
- 16% of Lamoille County high school students are using alcohol and 8% using cannabis before the age of 13.
- We are also concerned by data related to retail outlets and youth.
We need to come together to reduce these numbers through well-funded, well-coordinated prevention efforts. Contact Jessica Bickford at jessica@healthylamoillevalley.org for more information about Healthy Lamoille Valley’s work in this area.
About the presenter: John S. Searles, Ph.D. was the Substance Abuse Research and Policy Analyst and Chair of the State Epidemiological Workgroup for the Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse Programs in the Vermont Department of Health. He retired in 2019. He is currently an appointed member of the legislatively mandated Substance Misuse Prevention Advisory Council and serves on the council’s Equity, Prevention, and Policy subcommittees. He has been on the faculty at University of California, Berkeley, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Vermont. He has co-edited two books (“Children of Alcoholics” and “Alcohol and the Family”) and published over 50 scientific articles in the substance use/abuse field. John earned his doctorate in psychology from the University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Searles was a major contributor to the initial marijuana legalization Health Impact Assessment published by the Vermont Department of Health in 2016, the principal author of the 2017 HIA literature review update, and an advisor for the 2020 update.