Discussion with adults can decrease teens’ marijuana use

Discussion with adults can decrease teens’ marijuana use : A brief, voluntary conversation with adults leads to up to a 20 percent decrease in marijuana use for teenagers who frequently use the drug, according to a new research. To many people, smoking pot is no big deal. They cite reasons such as: "it isn't dangerous or addictive" and "everybody is doing it."

Denise Walker, co-director of the University of Washington's Innovative Programs Research Group, disagrees. "It's not a risk-free drug," she said.

"Lots of people who use it do so without problems. But there are others who use it regularly - almost daily - and want to stop but aren't sure how." "Many teens also have concerns about their use, even if they're not sharing them with family or friends," she added.

The participants in the motivational interviewing group-in which the health educator and student discussed the student's marijuana use and how it might be interfering with the student's life, goals and personal values, and about social norms of how much others use the drug-started the study using marijuana 40 out of the previous 60 days. Three months after counseling they had decreased their use 20 percent, to 32 out of 60 days. After a year they still showed a 15 percent decrease, 34 days out of 60. The study was published in the journal Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. (ANI)