SATUCI Youth Partners e-Newsletter
August 2014
Binge drinking

Surviving summer

Summer is a great opportunity for your teen's brains and bodies to relax. It's a time to try new activities, declare some independence from parents, learn a new skill, play and just be a kid. This is all true. But teens like to test the limits during the summer and drive their parents crazy.  Read more.

Excessive drinking causes 1 in 10 adult deaths

Excessive alcohol consumption causes one in 10 deaths among U.S. adults, whether because of accidents or medical conditions that arise from long-term drinking, research showed Thursday. Read more.

Marijuana oil found in Marshalltown

Marshalltown Police Chief Tupper reports that marijuana oil or THC oil has been found in Marshalltown. It's an especially potent form of marijuana, also known as "honey," "honey oil," "wax" or "earwax" because of its sticky, amber-colored appearance. It is smoked in e-cigarettes.  Read more.

Tobacco companies have changed cigarettes to make them more addictive

Tobacco companies have made design changes to cigarettes to make them more addictive and more attractive to children, according to a new report by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids. The report concludes cigarettes are more harmful today than 50 years ago, when the first Surgeon General report linked tobacco to health risks, according to ABC News. Read more.

Youth epidemic of multiple health risks

National data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2014) show that millions of American adolescents experience key risk behaviors known to harm their physical and mental health.  Many of these risk behaviors are associated with substance use. Read more.

Real stories from ex-smokers

For every person who dies from smoking, at least 30 people live with a serious illness. Read their stories.

Want to help teens say no? Give them a script

It's not enough to coach our kids to "just say no" (to drinking, to drugs, to sex) - that as humans, we are hard-wired to want to please others and avoid awkward situations, and without an actual script, saying "no" can be almost impossibly hard. Read more.

The myths of smoking pot

From her perch as head of the National Institute on Drug Abuse in Bethesda, Maryland, Nora Volkow watches anxiously as the country embarks on what she sees as a risky social experiment in legalizing marijuana. For those who argue that marijuana is no more dangerous than tobacco and alcohol, Volkow has two main answers: We don't entirely know, and, simultaneously, that is precisely the point. Read more.

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Marshall County Home Care Plus
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It's only weed - why should I care?

Nearly 4 out of 10 students, grades 9-12, have tried marijuana. Even if you don't think your child is experimenting, it's important to talk to them about the risks and consequences of marijuana use. Marijuana use changes teens' brains, bodies, and behaviors.

The Brain. Marijuana affects alertness, concentration,perception, coordination and reaction time, many of the skills required for learning, safe driving and other tasks. These effects can last up to 24 hours after smoking marijuana.

Learning and Social Behavior. In a study of college students, heavy marijuana users made more errors, had more problems paying attention to changes in the environment, and had more problems learning, than students who used less often (even after discontinuing its use for at least 24 hours.) Kids who smoke marijuana may also jeopardize their futures my engaging in risky behaviors (like having unsafe sex, getting in trouble with the law, etc). 

Mental Health. Using marijuana weekly or more frequently can double a teen's risk of depression and anxiety. Teens who smoke marijuana when feeling anxiety. Teens who smoke marijuana when feeling depressed are also more likely to become addicted to it or other illicit drugs. Eight percent of depressed teens abused or became dependent on marijuana during the year they experienced depression compared with only 3 percent of non-depressed teens. A study based on data from the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse linked increased anxiety and panic attacks to past year marijuana use. That same study found that teenagers ages 12 to 17 who smoke marijuana weekly are three times more likely to have thoughts of committing suicide. Youth with a personal or family history of schizophrenia are at a greater risk of marijuana-induced psychosis.

Addiction. Research has established that marijuana is addictive and that it is three times more likely to lead to dependence among adolescents than adults. Each year more kids enter treatment with a primary diagnosis of marijuana dependence than for all other illicit drugs combined. 

Get the conversation going!

Now that school is starting up again, it's a great way to start talking with your child, no matter what age he or she is. Parents who talk with their children develop better relationships with them and get to know them better, opening up the opportunity for questions about drugs and alcohol.

Here are some questions to get the conversation going! Select one or two questions to try out. 

  • Is there anything you would like to share with me about your day at school? Any interesting facts or ideas? If so, what?
  • Did you meet anyone new today? If so, who? 
  • Are there any school events coming up that you are planning to attend? If so what events? 
  • Are you happy with your classes? Why or why not?
  • What makes a day at school a good day?
  • Do you have all the material you need in your classes? If not, what do you need? 
  • Will the classes you are taking give you any advantage in the future? If so which classes?
  • Do you have any homework tonight? Do you need any help with the assignment? If so what can I help you with?
  • Where do you see yourself after high school? 
  • Which staff member at school knows you best?
  • If you could change one thing about your school what would it be?
  • What do you think about volunteering in the community?
  • If you could be anything you would like when you grow up what would it be?
  • What career field would you like to go into?
  • Who did you sit by at lunch today?
  • Who is your funniest friend at school?
  • Did any of your friends do something funny at school? What did they do? What was the funniest thing that happened?
  • What could you teach me that you learned today?
  • Who do you hang out with when you are at school
  • What can I do to help you be more successful?
  • What class went by the slowest today? Why?
  • What could you teach me that you learned today?
  • Who do you hang out with when you are at school?
  • What can I do to help you be more successful? 
  • If you had one word to describe your favorite teacher, what word would you use?

What are e-cigarettes? 

E-cigarettes and vapor pens are battery-powered vaporizers that heat liquid nicotine (aka e-liquid, e-juice, or smoke juice) to a temperature that causes the liquid to vaporize; the vapor is then inhaled in the same fashion as tobacco smoke.

The main components of an e-cigarette are an atomizer (a metal chamber with a micro-heater that vaporizes the liquid), a cartridge containing the liquid, and a small sometimes rechargeable battery. When the user inhales, the atomizer is activated and the liquid is vaporized. E-cigarettes are either disposable or rechargeable, and some use separately purchased pre-filled or refillable e-liquid nicotine cartridges. Vapor pens are similar to e-cigarettes; however, instead of a liquid cartridge they include a refillable reservoir where liquid drops are added.

Vapor pens allow the user to vaporize various liquid products from the same device and are more easily used to vaporize higher potency marijuana extract concentrates like THC oil, hash oil, and marijuana wax.

Most nicotine liquids are a mixture of food-grade propylene glycol, vegetable glycerin, nicotine, water, and flavoring. They often are packaged in eye-dropper bottles. The strength of nicotine liquids typically range from 0 milligrams of nicotine per milliliter of liquid (nicotine free) to 36 milligrams per milliliter (strong). For comparison, the average tobacco cigarette contains nine milligrams of nicotine. The use of drip-type e-liquids (usually in vapor pens) is referred to as "dripping."

E-devices have surged in popularity due to perceptions by some members of the general public- both users and non-users that vapors from e-devices are less harmful than traditional cigarette smoke. The vapors from these devices are usually perceived as less invasive and less offensive by non-smokers compared to traditional cigarette smoke. This allows e-device users to smoke their products in areas often off limits to traditional cigarette smokers.

FDA has not evaluated any e-cigarettes for safety or effectiveness. When FDA conducted limited laboratory studies of certain samples, FDA found significant quality issues that indicate that quality control processes used to manufacture these products are substandard or non-existent. FDA found that cartridges labeled as containing no nicotine contained nicotine and that three different electronic cigarette cartridges with the same label emitted a markedly different amount of nicotine with each puff. Experts have also raised concerns that the marketing of products such as e-cigarettes can increase nicotine addiction among young people and may lead kids to try other tobacco products. 

  Look for this billboard this month in Marshalltown!


 
 
Parent tip for the month

Talking to our children early and often about marijuana use will help them make good decisions.

  • Talk to your child about marijuana before you suspect they are experimenting. Studies show that youth are more likely to initiate marijuana use between the ages of 13 and 14, and during this time you have the most influence over their behavior. After age 15, teens tend to base their decisions more on peer influence.
  • If you think your teen has been using marijuana, ask them about it immediately. Kids say that losing their parents' respect and trust are the most important reasons not to use drugs.
  • Help your teen to understand all of the consequences of marijuana use - both physical and legal. 
  • Before you talk to your teen, make sure you speak their language. Know the modern marijuana lingo and paraphernalia, and tips for recognizing the obvious and not-so-obvious signs of teen marijuana use. Find out more about marijuana.