{"id":20821,"date":"2026-03-14T18:18:33","date_gmt":"2026-03-14T17:18:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/?p=20821"},"modified":"2026-03-14T18:18:33","modified_gmt":"2026-03-14T17:18:33","slug":"youth-and-cannabis-whats-the-risk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/2026\/03\/youth-and-cannabis-whats-the-risk\/","title":{"rendered":"Youth and cannabis: What\u2019s the risk?"},"content":{"rendered":"<section class=\"box_border-box bg_$gs1 pos_sticky top_[0px] z_[20] [@media_print]:d_none\" data-sho-block-id=\"block_017fbc26-9116-46bd-9eb3-786e7cf9c763\" data-sho-block-name=\"BlockPubHeaderMenu-HeaderMain\" data-subscription-status=\"not-subscribed\">\n<div id=\"header-main-top-container\" class=\"box_border-box\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<div class=\"gutter gutter--variant_horizontal\">\n<nav class=\"pos_relative justify_space-between border-bw_$1 border-bottom-style_solid border-b_$gs6 py_$4\">\n<div class=\"customflex customflex--direction_row customflex--align_center customflex--justify_between customflex--wrap_noWrap\">\n<div class=\"box_border-box w_$full d_none bp2:d_block\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span class=\"text text--oll_true text--allowNaturalMb_false text--variant_caption text--isLink_false text_$gs11 w_$fit\" style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"w_auto max-w_calc(100dvw_-_32px) obj-fit_contain transition-prop_max-height duration_$normal ease_in-out hover:opacity_0.8 hover:ease_in-out bp2:max-w_min(560px,_35vw) bp2:h_[50px]! h_[30px]! bp3:h_[90px]!\" src=\"https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=3840\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 56.5625em) 50vw, 400px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=256 256w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=384 384w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=415 415w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=600 600w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=700 700w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=800 800w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=905 905w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=1080 1080w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=1240 1240w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=1400 1400w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=1920 1920w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=2048 2048w, https:\/\/public-assets-prod.pubgen.ai\/brand_4fc3eb37-4c8a-4951-9324-365f6e4b53fd\/asset_9163ec22-3d57-46e3-bc58-92bee472d059.webp?w=3840 3840w\" alt=\"Site logo\" width=\"264\" height=\"37\" aria-hidden=\"false\" data-nimg=\"1\" \/><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/nav>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><main><\/p>\n<section data-sho-block-name=\"BlockPubArticleHeader\" data-sho-block-id=\"block_21338411-56ed-5ac5-96ad-5348a4386398\" data-gallery-type=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"customflex customflex--direction_column customflex--align_center customflex--justify_center customflex--wrap_noWrap\">\n<div class=\"customflex customflex--direction_column customflex--align_stretch customflex--justify_center customflex--wrap_noWrap\">\n<div class=\"\">\n<div class=\"gutter gutter--variant_tall\">\n<div class=\"customflex customflex--direction_column customflex--align_center customflex--justify_start customflex--wrap_noWrap m_auto text-align_center\">\n<div class=\"box_border-box max-w_[750px] ml_auto mr_auto\">\n<div class=\"text text--oll_false text--allowNaturalMb_false text--variant_h2 text--isLink_false text_$gs12 mb_$6 text-wrap_[pretty]\" data-mrf-layout-title=\"\">\n<div class=\"[&amp;_[data-side=&quot;top&quot;]]:rounded-t_$4 [&amp;_[data-side=&quot;top&quot;]]:rounded-r_$4 [&amp;_[data-side=&quot;top&quot;]]:rounded-b_$0 [&amp;_[data-side=&quot;top&quot;]]:rounded-l_$0 [&amp;_[data-side=&quot;bottom&quot;]]:rounded-t_$0 [&amp;_[data-side=&quot;bottom&quot;]]:rounded-r_$0 [&amp;_[data-side=&quot;bottom&quot;]]:rounded-b_$4 [&amp;_[data-side=&quot;bottom&quot;]]:rounded-l_$4 d_inline [&amp;_[data-radix-popper-content-wrapper]]:z_[2]!\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\"><span class=\"text text--oll_true text--allowNaturalMb_false text--variant_body1 text--isLink_false text_$gs12 text-align_center bp3:text-align_left transition-prop_all duration_$slow ease_out author-name\">by Elaine Williams, <\/span><span class=\"text text--oll_true text--allowNaturalMb_false text--variant_caption text--isLink_false text_$gs11 transition-prop_all duration_$slow ease_out author-title\">Business editor &#8211; <span class=\"text text--oll_true text--allowNaturalMb_false text--variant_overline text--isLink_false text_$gs11\" data-mrf-recirculation-skip=\"\">March 8, 2026<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n<h2><span class=\"text text--oll_false text--allowNaturalMb_false text--variant_subtitle2 text--isLink_false text_$gs11 mb_$6 text-wrap_[pretty]\" style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Cannabis sales have surged in Washington since legalization in 2012, but educators, police and health experts say questions remain about effects on young users<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div class=\"box_border-box w_$full pos_relative [&amp;_swiper-slide]:bg_$gs3 [&amp;_swiper-container]:bg_$gs3\">\n<div class=\"swiper swiper-initialized swiper-horizontal swiper-backface-hidden\">\n<div class=\"swiper-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"box_border-box bg_$gs12 w_$full h_$0 pos_relative pb_[56.25%] bp3:pb_[min(56.25%,_60vh)]\">\n<div class=\"pos_absolute inset_$0\">\n<div class=\"gutter gutter--variant_bare\">\n<div class=\"pos_relative d_flex items_center justify_center overflow_hidden h_$full w_$full\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Paige Valpey\u2019s cannabis use began with what she perceived as a low-risk way to escape the angst of being a 13-year-old girl and bonding with friends.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<section class=\"\" data-sho-block-name=\"BlockPubArticleBody\" data-sho-block-id=\"block_87c426e2-2e84-55c0-bcc0-21f3929ed35a\" data-mrf-recirculation=\"Article - Body\">\n<div class=\"gutter gutter--variant_tall\">\n<div class=\"customflex customflex--direction_column bp3:customflex--direction_row customflex--align_stretch customflex--justify_center bp3:customflex--justify_between customflex--wrap_noWrap bp3:customflex--gap_5\">\n<div class=\"customflex customflex--direction_column customflex--align_center bp3:customflex--align_start customflex--justify_start customflex--wrap_noWrap text-wrap_[pretty] overflow-wrap_break-word max-w_[750px] m_[0_auto] w_$full bp3:my_$0 bp3:ml_$auto bp3:mr_$9 bp3:border-lw_$1 bp3:border-rw_$1 bp3:border-style_solid bp3:border_$gs6 bp3:py_$0 bp3:px_$4\">\n<div class=\"customflex customflex--direction_column customflex--align_stretch customflex--justify_start customflex--wrap_noWrap customflex--gap_10\">\n<div class=\"box_border-box\">\n<div class=\"box_border-box h_auto box_border-box w_$full [&amp;_table]:d_block [&amp;_table]:overflow-x_[auto] [&amp;_p[data-wisiwig-body1]]:text_$b2\" style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">She first smoked cannabis with friends after school, stealing the drug from a stash belonging to adults who weren\u2019t home, said Valpey, who is now 28, nine months sober, a licensed esthetician, owner of a thriving business and a wife.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">In hindsight, Valpey believes her habit, among other things, hurt her grades, curtailed her participation in school activities, triggered fatigue and caused anxiety.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Valpey started using cannabis in the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley before recreational sales became legal in Washington in 2012. But she said she found more access to the drug once cannabis stores opened in Clarkston even though she never purchased it from one of the state-licensed retailers when she was underage.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Information Washington state agencies have collected and research they have completed since recreational sales of cannabis became legal indicate the drug can be related to troubling issues for adolescents and teens who use it, like Valpey did.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Impaired learning for as long as 28 days after the last hit for weekly users and suicidal ideation for daily users are among the health conditions adolescents could encounter, according to the website of the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"article-in-content-ad-7-0\" class=\"box_border-box min-h_250px d_block [@media_print]:d_none\" style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">A decrease in perceptual reasoning after one or two uses, along with an increase in the likelihood for generalized anxiety are noted in one state study.<\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"box_border-box h_auto box_border-box w_$full [&amp;_table]:d_block [&amp;_table]:overflow-x_[auto] [&amp;_p[data-wisiwig-body1]]:text_$b2\" style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Despite the potential risks, monitoring health impacts of cannabis on adolescents has gaps. Meanwhile, legal sales of the drug skyrocket and some worry the product is getting into the hands of teens through indirect channels.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\"><strong>The parameters of legal cannabis<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Total annual sales in Asotin County\u2019s three retail cannabis stores were four times larger in 2024 compared to the first full year of legal sales in that jurisdiction more than a decade ago, after adjusting for inflation. Overall state sales rose by 87%. (See accompanying graphic.)<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Lewiston and Clarkston police believe teenagers are using some of that cannabis, even though retailers comply with a ban on sales to anyone under the age of 21 and a Washington state survey shows a decline in youth use.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">In contrast, Matt Plemmons, an owner of Greenfield Cannabis in Clarkston, thinks legalization has not made cannabis more accessible to adolescents and teens.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">\u201cLegalization has made it safer,\u201d he said. \u201cWe developed a highly, strictly regulated market that checks everybody\u2019s IDs, every time, no matter what. Illicit dealers did not check. They didn\u2019t care if you were not 21 years old.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">If teenagers are hanging around his business, employees call law enforcement, Plemmons said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Youth cannabis prevention should be a collaboration of \u201ceverybody, parents, schools, health care providers and state regulators,\u201d Plemmons said. \u201cThe industry side is strict compliance (with all state laws).\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Still, the safeguards Plemmons described don\u2019t stop young people from paying adults to buy cannabis from the state stores or stealing cannabis from adult relatives and friends, said Clarkston police officers, educators and students.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">A sign posted outside Canna4Life Cannabis Dispensary in Clarkston warns that the penalties for adults purchasing cannabis for minors are as much as 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. But prosecutions in Asotin County for the felony are infrequent, likely between six to 12 cases since 2000, said Asotin County Prosecutor Curt Liedkie.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Obtaining evidence is difficult. Kids typically don\u2019t come forward. Absent officers witnessing transactions or finding text messages, the cases are challenging to prosecute, he said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">\u201cWe take it very seriously,\u201d Liedkie said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">That reality is widely known in the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley, where Asotin County\u2019s three stores are within a 10-minute walk of CHS, said Caden Massey, coordinator of Clarkston EPIC (Empowering People Inspiring Change), a Washington state-funded program.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Massey\u2019s group made the signs posted at Canna4Life, one of its many efforts to help teens struggling with mental health and academic issues.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">\u201cI know people who have purchased weed for younger people, and their perception is \u2018Nothing is going to happen. I\u2019m of legal age,\u2019 \u201c Massey said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">All of the stores are at least 1,000 feet away from schools, libraries, parks, daycares and arcades, in compliance with state rules, and even closer to the police department, making it easy for officers to monitor the retailers, Plemmons said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">The physical separation of the stores from places where teens gather is just part of the issue.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Teenagers who are curious, but who haven\u2019t used the drug, window shop the retailers online, browsing hundreds of products, and then tell whoever is buying for them exactly what they want, said one Clarkston High School student.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"box_border-box h_auto box_border-box w_$full [&amp;_table]:d_block [&amp;_table]:overflow-x_[auto] [&amp;_p[data-wisiwig-body1]]:text_$b2\">\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Once again, Plemmons has a different take. Customers can only order products on his website, he notes. All purchases happen at the store where everyone is carded.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Parents and teachers can use the website as a resource to learn about cannabis to help them refine prevention strategies, he said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">\u201cI\u2019ve had teachers come (to Greenfield) and given them a full breakdown of what everything looks like,\u201d Plemmons said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">In some families, teenagers obtain cannabis in their homes, said John Morbeck, a Clarkston police officer who was in charge of the community\u2019s youth drug prevention program when state-licensed cannabis stores debuted in Asotin County.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Before that, everyone kept it out of sight, he said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">\u201c(Parents) didn\u2019t want their kids to go to school and say, \u2018Hey, Mom and Dad are smoking pot.\u2019 So it wasn\u2019t available to (kids),\u201d Morbeck said. \u201cAs soon as the legal part changed, that\u2019s when stuff at the schools started increasing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">The Washington CannaBusiness Association asserts underage access to cannabis is happening through a different route.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">There\u2019s a thriving illicit market online where kids can purchase untested, unregulated and untaxed cannabis products like hemp-derived THC, according to an email from the association.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Valpey\u2019s experience mirrors what law enforcement shared.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">She said she had more access to cannabis when the state-licensed stores opened even though she hadn\u2019t turned 21 years old.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">\u201cIf you had an older sibling or friend, you could convince them to go in and get it for you,\u201d Valpey said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\"><strong>Data is lacking<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Just as it\u2019s difficult to know how widespread access to cannabis from state-licensed stores is to teenagers and others who are underage through indirect channels, it\u2019s also unclear the magnitude of any health issues caused by unauthorized availability of the drug.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Washington does not have a dedicated surveillance system that tracks the health impacts of youth cannabis in a systematic way, said Ryan McLaughlin, an associate professor at Washington State University who is co-director of the school\u2019s Cannabis Research Center, in an email.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">The lack of coordinated monitoring is widely acknowledged, McLaughlin said, and is a reason researchers at WSU and across the state emphasize the need for stronger public health tracking, particularly as the potency and variety of products have risen.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Plemmons agrees.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">\u201cPublic policy should be informed by as much reliable data as possible,\u201d Plemmons said. \u201cThat will help regulators refine our strategies to prevent use among minors.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"txtStyle_body1 mb_$body1\" style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">One effective strategy, Plemmons said, is distributing free lock boxes to customers at cannabis retailers, something EPIC sponsors.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\" data-wisiwig-body1=\"true\"><span style=\"font-family: verdana, geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; color: #0000ff;\">Source: https:\/\/www.lmtribune.com\/local-news\/youth-and-cannabis-whats-the-risk-21338411\/<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/main><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by Elaine Williams, Business editor &#8211; March 8, 2026 Cannabis sales have surged in Washington since legalization in 2012, but educators, police and health experts say questions remain about effects on young users Paige Valpey\u2019s cannabis use began with what she perceived as a low-risk way to escape the angst of being a 13-year-old girl [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,129,68,142,40,19,61],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20821","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cannabis-marijuana","category-culture","category-drug-use-various-effects","category-latest-news","category-prevention-research","category-usa","category-youth"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20821","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20821"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20821\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20823,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20821\/revisions\/20823"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20821"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20821"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/drugprevent.org.uk\/ppp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20821"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}