Resource Highlight: Cannabis FactCheck
Jul 11, 2024Ventura County Behavioral Health recently updated some of their important online resources. Marijuana FactCheck and Vaping FactCheck VC are now under the umbrella of Cannabis FactCheck, a website that focuses on "what you need to know about teen cannabis use and vaping." (The Spanish version of the website can be found at Datos Marihuana.)
Cannabis FactCheck provides teens, parents, caregivers, and other caring community members with facts and information about cannabis use including the different ways that cannabis is consumed, the effects of cannabis on the developing teen brain, how cannabis potency has changed over the years, and the effects of cannabis use on driving and during pregnancy. The vaping portion of the website offers information on vaping nicotine, THC, secondhand vaping, and the ways in which teens are often targeted through advertising on social media.
The website features a fun myth vs. fact section on cannabis. Test your knowledge with the examples below and use what you learn to talk with the youth and young adults in your life:
1. Myth or fact? "Smoking weed won't affect how I do in school."
MYTH. Cannabis use has been shown to have a connection to:
- Lower grades
- Skipping classes
- Studying less
- Lower motivation
- Potential for dropping out
- Lost opportunities (sports, jobs, special programs)
2. Myth or fact? "Weed has the same effects no matter what your age is."
MYTH. Heavy teen cannabis use can lower IQ permanently. Early cannabis use is linked to IQ dropping about 8 points. Regular teen users who stopped using later in life did not recover the brain functionality that was lost.
3. Myth or fact? "You can't get addicted to weed."
MYTH. 9% of those who use cannabis will become addicted. Addiction is even more likely the younger a person starts using it. 25% to 50% of people who use cannabis every day may become addicted, and withdrawal symptoms can be hard to overcome.
Parents and caregivers can also find suggestions for ways to talk to your kids or the youth and young adults in your life about vaping and cannabis use. One of the suggestions is to be informed and answer their questions, in which case Cannabis FactCheck is a great resource to use because it offers science-based facts and relatable information.
To learn more, visit Cannabis FactCheck and Datos Marihuana.
