[ad_1]
TATT: In 2018, Kripos seized 600 to 700 kilos of cannabis in eastern Norway in two weeks. Later, nine people were arrested for drug offenses. Photo: Cornelius Poppe / NTB
Health authorities now see an increase in cannabis use among 15-16 year olds, while fewer believe the drug is dangerous.
– After about ten years of fairly stable cannabis use in the 15-16 age group, we now see that there has been an increase, says Elin Kristin Bye, senior researcher in the Department of Drugs and Tobacco at the National Institute of Public Health by NRK.
From 2007 to 2015, approximately 6.2 percent of young people had tried cannabis at times. In 2019, the turnout was 8.7 percent.
On the VG podcast “How Dangerous Is It Really?” Can you hear why young people are using and fighting to legalize cannabis?
You can also listen to the podcast Spotify, iTunes or other podcast platforms.
– Higher risk
Bye believes that the increase may be related to the fact that the drug has been talked about, used and shown on various television series.
– The earlier you start using cannabis and the more often you do it, the higher the risk. Cannabis use among young people we are talking about here is unfortunate, because then the brain is still developing and more vulnerable to the intoxicating substance THC found in cannabis, says Bye.
30 percent of tenth graders with cannabis experience stated that they had used edible products containing the active ingredient THC, while 20 percent had drank soda, iced tea, or the like that contained it.
– It may mean that the threshold to try it may be lower, because now it is the case that there are quite a few young people who smoke, and it is necessary to be able to use it in the traditional way, says the researcher.
Authorities campaign
Health authorities will launch a new campaign on Tuesday to reach young people with information about cannabis. They created the Wedeensenteret website and made informational videos to be posted on Tiktok, Snapchat, Instagram, and YouTube.
– It is very important to us that the information that young people receive from us does not come with a moral tail, but is credible and responsible, says Linda Granlund, director of the division of public health and prevention of the Norwegian Health Directorate.
