A leading public health concern in legalizing recreational cannabis across Canada pertains to cannabis consumption among adolescents. (1) This population group is particularly vulnerable to the risks associated with cannabis use, and this has been attributed to the drug's interference with structural (e.g., brain volume) and functional (e.g., cognitive, emotional) brain development. (2) Consistent evidence further reveals that early and frequent use during the teenage years is linked with low school performance, road traffic injury due to cannabis-impaired driving, and prospective psychiatric illness (e.g., anxiety, depression, schizophrenia). (3,4)
Despite the evidence, Canadian adolescents continue to have a benign view of cannabis (5) and exhibit the highest prevalence of past-year use among their global peers (i.e., 28%). (6) The related concerns with legalization revolve around the drug's increase in public accessibility, "normalization" of use, and potential spike in consumption patterns. In recognition of cannabis' risks, in conjunction with upcoming legalization next summer (i.e., 2018), many Canadian organizations and groups including the Task Force on Cannabis Legalization and Regulation--have stressed the importance of providing cannabis education to adolescents to mitigate harms of use in this at-risk population.
Thus, it is timely and important to begin monitoring and highlighting the proportion of adolescents who receive cannabis education in the coming years. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first Canadian study to examine the prevalence of high school students receiving cannabis-specific education. By doing so, a "pre-legalization" benchmark will be set for "post-legalization" comparative purposes. Further explored are the socio-demographic correlates of those receiving cannabis education, which can inform strategies tailored towards curbing cannabis use.
