Category Archives: Teens

Carol Read of Medfield is working in Needham as their federally funded substance abuse coordinator, seeking to reduce substance abuse amongst Needham youth, and she also volunteers with Medfield Cares About Prevention (MCAP) (www.MedfieldCares.org).  Carol also works on the state level with the Massachusetts Prevention Alliance (MAPA), which became active during the recent ballot initiative.  Carol and her MAPA colleagues invited me to attend a kick off dinner last Friday evening for a group called Project SAM, Smart Approaches to Marijuana in Massachusetts.

Project SAM is headlined by

• former Congressman Patrick Kennedy,
• a child psychiatrist from Colorado who has studied the increased problems his patients have had because of marijuana, and
• a former drug adviser to recent U.S. presidents.

Friday evening the Project Sam members shared the data developed in places like Colorado, that has had medical marijuana for a while.  The facts I took home were that

• the brains of young people are not fully developed until their mid-20’s, making them more susceptible to substances
• marijuana use by our young people puts them at increased risk for mental health hospitalizations and substance abuse problems in later life (both statistically rise with marijuana use by young people),
• fairly low levels of marijuana use (2-3 times a week for 2-3 years) were shown by a New Zealand study to reduce IQ by up to 8 points.

If these facts are correct, it is not responsible for we as parents, as adults, as a town, and as a society to allow our young people to injure themselves by means of marijuana use, without giving them all the facts.  The data I heard on Friday evening really scares me for the risks that our youth are taking with the marijuana use that we know is happening in Medfield.  Our youth need to get these complete facts, so they can at least make an informed decision.

This from the WaylandCares flyer –

What does medical marijuana mean to you?
How could it impact our youth and our community?

Medical marijuana is now legal in Massachusetts. What does this mean for communities?  What’s in the law? What’s not in the law? What are the implications for our youth? And what’s the best conversation to have with our children about marijuana to prevent teen use?

Learn from the experts:
 Yasmin Mashhoon, Ph.D., Neuroscientist at the Behavioral Psychopharmacology Research Laboratory of McClean Hospital and Instructor at Harvard Medical School will discuss 21st-century pot, its components, its harms, and its impact on youth. Dr.  Mashhoon will explain the effects on the adolescent brain, and related health issues such as addiction, mental health and latest research on physical and cognitive functioning

 John Sofis Scheft, Esq., Principal of Law Enforcement Dimensions, will explain what the medical marijuana law does and does not include: for what conditions can marijuana be  recommended? Who can use it as medicine? Who can provide a recommendation? Who can grow marijuana in their home? Atty. Scheft will also address best municipal practices to protect local public health and safety.
 James Broadhurst, M.D., a family physician also trained in sports and addiction medicine and delegate of Massachusetts Medical Society, will discuss the medical community’s perspective on medical marijuana. What do people need to know in considering marijuana as a medical treatment?
 Local authorities will explain initiatives in Wayland that address public health and safety related to marijuana.

This program is for the entire Wayland community.

Sponsored by WaylandCares and the Wayland High School Guidance Department Tuesday, March 19, 2013, 7:30 pm Wayland High School Auditorium