Effects of marijuana – with and without alcohol – on driving performance

Using the most sophisticated driving simulator of its kind to mirror real-life situations, new research shows that marijuana use impairs one measure of driving performance. People driving with blood concentrations of 13.1 µg/L THC – the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana – showed increased weaving within the lane, similar to those with 0.08 breath alcohol, the threshold for impaired driving in many states. Drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana had an additive effect, so that drivers using both substances weaved within lanes even if their blood THC and alcohol concentrations were below the impairment thresholds for each substance alone. Alcohol, but not marijuana, increased the number of times the car actually left the lane and the speed of weaving. The National Institute on Drug Abuse, the Office on National Drug Control Policy, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration funded the study.

The first time Sarah* used drugs — at age 13 — the experience was pretty unremarkable, she recalls. Now 18 and newly graduated from high school, Sarah does recall that it happened during the summer at a party. Other kids were drinking beer and smoking marijuana, so she tried them. She continued to smoke marijuana off and on during high school, and she occasionally drank alcohol to excess.

“It wasn’t like I needed something to make me feel happy,” she said. “I didn’t personally go seek it out. It was around.” Seated in a loose circle, Sarah is talking with other teenagers, who in one moment are sharing serious insights and life experiences, then joking and teasing in the next. These teens, ages 16 to 18, are participating in a group therapy session for adolescents at South Miami Hospital’s Addiction Treatment & Recovery Center.

BBQs, lemonade stands, pool days, and slip n’ slides…SUMMER IS HERE! But we all know along with all that fun comes lots of free time for your children. Help your children grow into responsible young adults (and make some money) this summer at a lemonade stand. Teach your children RESPONSIBILITY by having them run a lemonade stand...all while they're making money!

Parents have a tremendous amount of power when it comes to raising safe, healthy and drug free children. By leading your children in the right direction, supporting their healthy development and knowing when to draw the line, parents can launch responsible, healthy, productive members of society. 

INSTANT GRATIFICATION CAN MAKE YOU EAT YOUR FACE

“Users don’t know what they are buying. Dealers don’t know what they are selling.”

During our June webinar about 2015 Emerging Drug Trends, renowned epidemiologist Jim Hall shed light on the dark world of synthetic drugs. According to Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, synthetic drugs are “substances chemically similar to and/or that mimic the drug-like effects of controlled substances.” The drugs impact the central nervous system and can have stimulant, depressant and/or hallucinogenic effects.

Jim receives his information about the latest drug trends from a variety of sources, including data from emergency phone calls to poison control centers, crime scene investigations and medical examiner reports. In the first four months of 2015, 1,900 exposure calls were received by poison control centers about synthetic marijuana, also known as cannabinoids.

Say cheeeeese!

Pictures from the 30th Annual Informed Families Dinner at Joe's, held on May 18, 2015, are in. Click on the picture below to check them out!

Learn more about the dinner at Joe's here. 

According to a recent report from the Trust for America's Health Drug overdoses are the leading cause of injury deaths in the United States, at nearly 44,000 per year. Overdose deaths, half of which are related to prescription drugs, have more than doubled in the past 14 years.  Overdose deaths now exceed motor vehicle-related deaths in 36 states and Washington, D.C. And, in the past four years, drug overdose death rates have significantly increased in 26 states and Washington, D.C. and decreased in six.

Related: How To Tell If Someone You Know Is Hooked On Prescription Drugs