Teen Depression Worsened by Marijuana, Government Says
Corrected on 5/9/08: An earlier version of this story misspelled the name of Bruce Mirken.
Today the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy sent out a clear message on teen pot use and depression: They're a bad combination. Issuing a report that analyzes around a dozen studies about marijuana use and mental health, the policy office warned that teens who use marijuana to "self-medicate" may worsen their underlying depression or other mental health issues. The intention of the report, says John Walters, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, is to "try to correct two misunderstandings: That teen depression is not a problem and that teen marijuana use is not a problem—marijuana use is not safe." He advises parents to talk to their kids' pediatrician if they see signs of depression and suspect drug use.
The report, entitled "Teen Marijuana Use Worsens Depression: An Analysis of Recent Data Shows 'Self-Medicating' Could Actually Make Thing Worse," cites statistics to support its warning message, but experts are quick to note that it should be interpreted with caution. For example, the report's statement, "One 16-year study showed that individuals who were not depressed and then used marijuana were four times more likely to be depressed at follow-up," suggests marijuana might cause depression. That data from a 2001 study in the American Journal of Psychiatry was only statistically meaningful after the researchers adjusted for variables including age, gender, and antisocial symptoms, suggesting a weaker relationship between depression and marijuana before adjustments were made.The study also showed that those who were not depressed when first surveyed and then used opioids were 228 times more likely to be depressed at follow-up—without any adjustments. That statistic was not mentioned in the Drug Control Policy's report today. "Adolescent marijuana use may be a factor that triggers psychosis, depression, and other mental illness," says Walters, acknowledging that "research about causality is still ongoing."
Policy groups on the other side of the aisle believe the report is misleading. "We agree that kids shouldn't smoke marijuana, but we simply have to be honest to teens and parents. This report [is] deliberately confusing correlation with causation," says Bruce Mirken, director of communications at The Marijuana Project , a Washington-based group that aims to remove criminal penalties for marijuana use and make medical marijuana available to seriously ill patients with doctor's approval. "This very week the British government's official scientific advisors on illegal drugs issued a report saying they are 'unconvinced that there is a causal relationship between the use of cannabis and any affective disorder,' such as depression." Mirken takes issue with the lack of warning about alcohol's relationship to depression. "Data linking alcohol to depression is much stronger and alcohol use by teens is greater than marijuana use," he notes.
To be sure, experts believe marijuana carries risk, especially in the subset of teens who are more susceptible to substance abuse and mental health problems due to genetic makeup or environmental factors. "Among treatment populations [in] youth with substance abuse, there's a pretty high rate of clinical depression," says Oscar Bukstein, associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine; "many kids get high not to stay low."
Perhaps most important, those people with co-existing substance abuse and a mental health disorder have worse outcomes than those with either problem alone, he adds. For perspective, Bukstein notes that research has shown 1 in 10 kids who smoke marijuana go on to develop dependence, and about 1 in 10 kids who become dependent on marijuana have psychotic symptoms.
The bottom line, says Bukstein, is that mental illness and substance abuse very often go hand-in-hand. Parents who spot signs of depression should have their child professionally assessed for mental health issues, he says, and also for substance abuse—and the reverse is also true. As part of their development, kids are curious (see our previous story on teens' questions about drugs, addiction, alcohol and the like). To lower the likelihood of experimentation with pot, he advises parents to:
Always monitor and supervise. Know where your kids are going and with whom.
Set limits. Be sure they're not hanging out in homes where no adults are present.
Be consistent. Discipline works only when it's reinforced.
Seek professional help. If you have a hunch something's wrong, you're probably right.
Take care of your own problems. The biggest risk factor for substance abuse and mental health problems is family history.
Reader Comments
Cannabis a gods send
I've had an aneurysm/stroke and am going though a very difficult divorce with a narcissist ,not only does it relieve the muscle spasms from the nerve damage but I've not succumb to depression since I started treatment with Cannabis,It aided me immensely in relearning how to walk again.I was under 40 when I had my stroke and statistics say 70% of people under 40 that suffer a debilitating stroke become clinically depressed and half of those end their own lives,I'm still here smoking weed and watching Family guy:)All the government ever does is lie about Cannabis being bad for you just one disinformation campaign after another all to protect the timber,cotton and Pharmaceutical companies just to name a few.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOsJDoF_elE&feature=PlayList&p=F2BD2DE96972C893&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=23
It's amazing
I just started smoking pot about two weeks ago, after years of pot bashing others because of my family history of drugs and alcoholism and my fear that I'd end up like my mother. I have only gotten high about 4 or 5 hits in a week (one per day but not every day-I'm a lightweight lol) and I've found that it makes me so happy. It's not an emotional dependency but something totally different! The first time I got high, I recorded myself, because I had a lot of great, motivational things to say and my good side was forcing, yes, FORCING me to say it and hear it. I talked to myself in first person saying things like "YOU are beautiful, YOU are an amazing person... DON'T ever change... YOU ARE going to do what you love in life..." and then I listened to it the next day, and I was somewhat amazed at what I said. I have friends and family that tell me I'm a great person and that I"m beautiful, but hearing it come from yourself is something that everyone needs to experience. I've always had those lingering happy good self esteem thoughts every once in a while like on a day when you look amazing and you know it so because of that it boosts your self esteem, but those days when you wake up and you are feeling and looking horrible, then everything goes down the drain so quickly. It's hard to find beauty early in the morning. It is and has been motivating me to think better of myself on so many levels. Even when I don't smoke sometimes, I keep in mind that I am fine wherever I am, don't be worried, be yourself, I keep myself in check. Why can't I do that without pot? you may ask? You couldn't understand the grandeur of it until you understand where I've been and how I was before.
I use to have depression and I've had to go to a lot of therapists, I have been diagnosed with "Reactive Attachment Disorder" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reactive_attachment_disorder) and so I've had a lot of self esteem issues, depression, cutting, abandonment issues, not creating healthy relationships with people, not having relationships because of your inability to know boundries and such... things like that... Well I've gotten a lot better and I've gone years without pot, but I have to say that recently starting it (I decided to take a hit one day, not because it would make me feel better emotionally, but it helped me with my anxiety, which is a HUGE and annoyingly random thing for me) It helps me see my life as an oppurtunity, no a waste. I am out more, I can hold conversations more, I am more passionate about things I care about (I'm not a pushover and I am brutally honest more than normal) I seriously focus better! I've had adhd and so that's another thing for me... Well, I am a very intelligent person, I'm into art, sports, reading , writing, nature, showering (lol I'm kidding about the insinuated hippie reference! I'm not one but I respect you guys a lot! However bad that sounds I mean it in the nicest way possible! :P) My point: I'm more comfortable being myself. :D :D
Analogy
If you think about it if you never do it...then you never know.
People tell me if you marry a virgin and your a virgin then it wont be good; but; if you both dont know then does it matter?
If you dont smoke pot youll never know and wont have to have the i dont know or maybe or ok. Not knowing something is ok there is plenty of stuff we dont know and you think about it it doesnt matter. Like do you know what it is like on the sun? No do you care to know? If you care to know what it is like to smoke do it if not and you have the truble with yes or no jsut say no cause then you dont have to know and it cant really bug you it will just be another thing you can do and wont know. well you can do it but dont have to.
Becasue wahts the matter with one more thing you dont know?
Nothing.
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