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Health & Fitness

Connecting Car Seats and Marijuana

What?  No, really, I have a connection to make!

Medical use of marijuana has been legalized and recreational use has been decriminalized.  This has led a lot of Connecticut parents to ask themselves if use of marijuana by their teen is really such a big deal.  After all, for many parents some casual (or not so casual) use back in the day did not have any negative effect.  So, why should they fight with their kid about this, after all it isn't like they are using heroin or meth?  My answer to parents is that we know more now than we did then.  Just as we know that the 21 drinking age saves lives, we know that youth use of  marijuana is dangerous for kids.  We know that because the brain is still developing, use during adolescence leads to higher risks of adult addiction, onset of schizophrenia, memory impairment and permanent loss of IQ points. 

Here comes the car seat.  How many of you strapped your child into a car seat as an infant or toddler?  Most of you did.  So, I ask you Why?  After all your parents probably didn't use a car seat, and hey, you are just fine.  Maybe you did it because it became the law, and maybe you did it because you agreed with the intent of the law, to protect infants and toddlers from serious harm in the UNLIKELY EVENT that they were in a car accident.  As parents, we want to protect our children from as many of life's avoidable injuries as possible.  So while you or people you knew may have smoked some pot as kids and grew up just fine, the fact is that there were a bunch of kids that didn't grow up without problems and we know this for a fact.  We also know that  delaying experimentation with drugs and alcohol until 21 or later greatly reduces these risks.  So as parents, just like we strapped that squalling baby into the car seat to protect in case of an accident, we need to do all we can to protect our teens from the potential harm that underage use can bring.   

I know, the car seat was easy.  You bought it, you used it.  Many of you are asking how the heck you are supposed to keep your kid from smoking pot.  You can't be with them 24/7.  Here is the good news.  The single most effective thing parents can do to reduce the risk of a child using drugs is to engage in an ongoing discussion with their child about the risks of use, and your clearly expressed expectation that your child will not use.  It sounds too simple, and as anyone with a teenager knows, starting a discussion isn't always easy, but I am here to tell you it is effective!

Parent's need to educate themselves about the dangers of marijuana use.  Our culture is embracing marijuana as a non-issue, and your kids are very aware of that .  You need to be armed with the latest scientific facts to counter the "it's no big deal" argument.

You needed to learn how to install that car seat.  Now you need to learn how to present an effective argument against underage use of marijuana.  To help you arm yourself with the facts you need, we are hosting a "Protecting the Developing Brain" parent night on October 15, 2013. From 7 to 9 PM we will have expert speakers address both concussions as well as the latest information and research on the impact of marijuana on the adolescent brain.  Please join us.  Call (8600 844-5355 to register for this free discussion.

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