MONDAY, Aug. 26, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Nearly three-quarters of all adolescent cannabis users report use of cannabis concentrates, which are plant extracts that contain high concentrations of Δ-9-tetrahydrocannbinol (THC), according to a study published online Aug. 26 in Pediatrics.
Madeline H. Meier, Ph.D., from the Arizona State University in Tempe, and colleagues recruited a racially and ethnically diverse group of 47,142 eighth-, 10th-, and 12th-grade students from 245 schools across Arizona. Participants reported lifetime and past-month use of marijuana and cannabis concentrate, other substances, and risk and protective factors for substance use problems.
The researchers found that 33 and 24 percent of all students reported lifetime cannabis use and lifetime concentrate use, respectively. Of all lifetime cannabis users, 72 percent had used concentrates. Adolescent concentrate users were more likely than adolescent cannabis users who had not used concentrates to use other substances and to experience more risk factors and fewer protective factors for substance user problems across multiple life domains.
“As findings emerge showing high rates of concentrate use in adolescents, and increased cannabis-related risks associated with use of high-THC cannabis, policy makers might consider putting a limit on THC concentration in cannabis,” the authors write.
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