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Synthetic cannabinoid use linked to risk behaviors in teenagers
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Teenage synthetic cannabinoid users exhibited a higher prevalence of health risk behaviors, including those detrimental to sexual health, than teenagers who only have ever used marijuana, according to research published in Pediatrics.
“Users of synthetic cannabinoids have cited several motivations for use, such as an expectation that it may provide a more intense high than that experienced with marijuana, affordability, ease of access, to avoid detection from standard drug tests, and the belief that it is safe,” Heather B. Clayton, PhD, MPH, and colleagues wrote. "Unfortunately, deceptive marketing techniques, such as labeling synthetic cannabinoids as a safe and ‘natural’ blend of herbs, have been used, which gives users the false impression that synthetic cannabinoids are a safe drug alternative.”
Using data from the 2015 Youth Risk Behavior Survey of students between grades 9 and 12, Clayton and colleagues examined the similar behavioral risk attributes between synthetic cannabinoid use and marijuana use were compared.
The connection between self-reported type marijuana use (never use of marijuana or synthetic cannabinoids, ever use of one type) and 36 risk behaviors were assessed. These behaviors spread across four areas: substance use, injury/violence, mental health and sexual health. The adjusted prevalence ratios were computed using multivariable models.
According to study results, those who had reported using synthetic cannabinoids were much more likely to report behaviors in the substance use and sexual risk domains when compared with those who had reported marijuana use only.
Synthetic cannabinoid users were also more likely to have used marijuana before the age of 13, in addition to being more likely to have used marijuana at least once in the past 30 days or to have used marijuana at least 20 times in the past 30 days.
The researchers found that synthetic cannabinoid users were more likely to use other substances when compared with marijuana-only users, and both groups were more likely to do so than non-users. In addition, rates of injury/violence behaviors were also higher among synthetic cannabinoid users than marijuana-only users.
“Changes in the legal status of synthetic cannabinoids are thought to have contributed to declining use among high school students, with past-year use of synthetic cannabinoids decreasing among 12th-graders from 11.3% in 2012 to 5.3% in 2015,” Clayton and colleagues wrote. “Despite the evidence that synthetic cannabinoid use is declining, recent reports indicate that synthetic cannabinoids are still available and that acute poisonings from synthetic cannabinoids have increased.” —by Katherine Bortz
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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