Marijuana: Doctors face off Over Amendment 64

As noted by Smart Colorado, the leading No on 64 organization, Kunrath and several other pediatricians penned an open letter attacking the act. “Regardless of your feelings about marijuana, we, as pediatricians, feel it is important to know about how marijuana legalization can affect children and teenagers and the increased risks they could face if Amendment 64 passes,” they wrote.

To bolster this assertion, the letter’s signatories shared arguments synopsized by Smart Colorado like so:

• Since medical marijuana dispensaries began operating in 2009, there have been more accidental ingestions of marijuana by young children in Colorado. Between October 2009 and December 2011, there were 14 children (ages 8 months-12 years) seen for accidental marijuana ingestions at Children’s Hospital Colorado. Of these children, 9 had documented exposure to someone else’s medical marijuana, 8 were hospitalized, and 2 required admission to the intensive care unit.

• Chronic use of marijuana before age of 15 leads to worse neurocognitive functioning (i.e. ability to think, to reason, and to work) later in life.

• Using marijuana as a young teenager puts vulnerable individuals at increased risk of developing of psychosis.

• Compared to 2007-2008, there have been 15 more fatal car crashes involving a driver under the influence of marijuana in 2009-2010.

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