Vaping Provides a New "Buzz" for Teen Marijuana Use

Vaporizers have been hailed as a revolutionary approach to reducing cigarette smoking. This is a revolutionary innovation for millions of Americans to be able to quit smoking and avoid the seventy carcinogens that cigarettes have in them. However, there are negative aspects to vaporizers too. Experts behind a 2017 research project have found that an increasing number of teens are finding ways to use cannabis in vaporizers. Teens can conceal the fact that they are abusing marijuana by appearing to just be innocently “vaping.”

The Results of a Monitoring the Future Study

The Monitoring the Future survey is a nationwide study and research program funded through the National Institute on Drug Abuse. According to the Monitoring the Future Survey, more than one-third of teens surveyed use marijuana, and about one-third of teens use a vaporizer device.

Between 2015 and 2016, marijuana use among teens increased from 35.6 percent to 37.1 percent. Teen perception of risk in marijuana use has decreased as well. Only 14.1 percent of teens see “great risk” in smoking marijuana. This is the lowest percentage of perceived risk since 1979. Teens see marijuana use as being a very “okay” and “safe” thing to do.

Though the percentage increase in marijuana use does not seem that great, the coupled increase in use and the decrease in perceived risk should be seen as very concerning. If teens are seeing less risk in using marijuana then it is certain that usage statistics will surge forward soon.

How Marijuana is Being Used in Vaporizers

With the above information from the Monitoring the Future survey, it starts to make sense the risk involved with teen marijuana use. As marijuana is the number one gateway drug for teens to then be inspired to progress onto hard drugs, there is going to be a concern when teens find a new way to abuse marijuana.

According to the Monitoring the Future survey data, 27.8 percent of teens use vaporizer devices. Vaporizers are electric devices that can heat substances to produce vapor. Teens can essentially put whatever they want into vaporizers, be it flavorings, oils, nicotine, or cannabis. At least one in ten teens who use vaporizers also use marijuana in those vaporizers.

The method for using marijuana in vaporizers is to purchase special vaporizer liquid that has cannabis extract oil in it. This is legal in some areas and is relatively easy to get by teens. The liquid is poured into the vaporizer, and as the vaporizer is activated, the cannabis liquid is converted into vapor and inhaled into the user’s lungs. It has a very similar effect on the user as smoking marijuana would.

Reversing the Trend

Marijuana use is now extremely prevalent amongst teens as the drug has become more acceptable across the U.S. Teens are now more likely to smoke marijuana than they are to smoke cigarettes. According to the Monitoring the Future survey, less than ten percent of teens smoke cigarettes, yet slightly more than twenty percent of teens smoke marijuana. Many believe this is because teens erroneously feel that smoking marijuana is safer than smoking cigarettes.

Teens need to understand the truthful and legitimate risks involved with marijuana use. They don’t need false data and scare tactics, but they do need to be educated on the negative aspects of the drug. When teens abuse marijuana, they are usually doing it without knowing what’s at stake. We need to educate our teens of what is at stake to prevent them from walking down an unhealthy path with vaporizer marijuana use.

Sources:

• http://www.monitoringthefuture.org/data/16data/16drtbl11.pdf
• https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2017-12-14/nih-survey-alcohol-marijuana-and-vaping-top-students-2017-drug-use
• https://www.vox.com/cards/marijuana-legalization/where-is-marijuana-legal
• https://www.usnews.com/news/national-news/articles/2017-12-14/nih-survey-alcohol-marijuana-and-vaping-top-students-2017-drug-use