HEALTH COACH - ER visits for children increase dramatically after legitimized pot in Colorado

HEALTH COACH -

 ER visits for children increase dramatically after legitimized pot in Colorado  

 The number of teenagers sent to emergency rooms has more than quadrupled after legalizing marijuana in Colorado - mainly for mental health symptoms, researchers said Thursday. 







 They found 639 teenagers who went to a hospital system in Colorado in 2015 either had cannabis in their urine or told the doctor they had used cannabis. This is from 146 in 2005, before the use of marijuana was legalized in Colorado. 







 
 
 "The statewide effect of the legalization of marijuana on the use of adolescents has begun to be assessed," said Dr. George Sam Wang of the University of Colorado, who led the study. 







 Wang said that people believe that marijuana is safe - but that is not the case. 







 "The perception of risk has dropped a bit," Wang told NBC News. 







 "We know that the use of marijuana at a young age can affect adolescent brains". 







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 Colorado legalized the use of medical marijuana in 2010 and made recreational use of legal marijuana in 2014. Other studies have shown that visits to ER Involving the use of marijuana increased after these dates, especially among children and tourists who visit Colorado. 







 Cannabis is legal for medical use in 28 states and Washington, DC, and eight more states have legalized the recreational use of marijuana and marijuana products. 







 Wang and colleagues examined the emergency department of the university hospital and emergency care records between 2005 and 2015 for study, presented at a meeting of companies Pediatric teaching in San Francisco. 







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 They found 3,433 emergency visits from 13 to 21 years of age to six ERs and emergency care centers during this period. Two-thirds involved psychiatric symptoms, Wang said. More than half have also had evidence of other drugs in their systems, including alcohol, amphetamines and cocaine. 







 A federal survey published at the end of last year found that 6% of senior high school seniors used marijuana daily. Wang said it was important to know how damaging it is to them. 







 Wang also studied the effects of legalization on young children, who are more likely to get marijuana by accident. 







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 In 2016, Wang found that the average rate of visits related to marijuana at the children's hospital doubled after legalization. The center of Poison calls marijuana from nine in 2009 to 47 in 2015. 







 Children received medication from parents, grandparents, neighbors, friends, babysitters or other relatives. Most of the time, children ate food containing marijuana. Their symptoms included drowsiness, dizziness, vomiting, restlessness, dangerous heart rhythms and convulsions. 














 Studies suggest that the use of marijuana and alcohol generally prevents driving more than just one substance and that the use of alcohol can increase the number of alcohol - 39; absorption of THC, the psychoactive chemical found in marijuana.