A new statewide campaign, created with input from Summit County health officials, intends to provide parents and mentors a resource to start a conversation with teens about underage marijuana misuse – and the harm it can cause to the brain.
The program, Gray Matters, was developed by a coalition of the state’s county health departments, including the Summit County Health Department’s prevention team, as well as medical marijuana advocates and youth groups. Gray Matters – named for the tissue that helps the brain complete daily functions – doesn’t get into the politics of weed, but gives parents a tool that relies on science and research to help educate teens on the possible dangers misuse can have on their development.
“We have to protect our kids’ brains,” said Kathy Day, the Health Department’s prevention coordinator.
The Health Department’s efforts started earlier this year when Pamella Bello, the director of behavioral health prevention, began collaborating with 13 other prevention directors from across the state to develop the program. Research shows the majority of youth trust their parents, so Gray Matters focuses on educating adults and providing them with resources to talk to teens about the damage misusing marijuana can have on their developing bodies.
Bello said the program provides parents with a talk kit that helps them address controversial subjects with their kids. The marijuana talk kit includes information about the potential short- and long-term effects of using marijuana, reasons why some teens may start using it and offers tips for starting a conversation. It includes advice about words to avoid when talking about marijuana as well as prompts for different situations. Gray Matters also pushes utilizing facts and encourages parents to be transparent about where their information came from.
“We want this campaign to be for everyone, all opinions, working together on this message,” Bello said.
Day agreed, saying, “It’s the middle ground. It looks at both sides, but there’s a lot of research behind it.”
Regardless of the moral arguments behind legalizing marijuana, Bello and Day said it’s important for parents and teens to understand how underage misuse affects development. The risks include increased likelihood of depression, difficulty making good decisions and poor school performance. Day said frequent marijuana use can also trigger mental illnesses and impair adolescents’ ability to learn skills that help manage negative emotions like stress.
Underage marijuana misuse is a big problem in Summit County, according to the Health Department’s prevention team. The team agrees that weed is the first drug most teens experiment with and it’s often easier for them to find than alcohol. Teenage marijuana use has increased across the country as more states legalize medicinal and recreational weed, according to Day.
In other cases, parents are supplying it. Day said some adults may not realize how marijuana has changed since the 1960s.
“It’s much stronger than it used to be and it’s quite different than some of these parents might be used to,” she said. “It’s like comparing pouring an ounce of alcohol in a cup of water and drinking it versus drinking a shot – it’s more concentrated. But no matter how it’s consumed, it can affect the brain.”
That’s why Health Department staff hope the program’s launch will bring a resource to families as they navigate a new era of marijuana. Within the next few weeks, the prevention team anticipates a social media campaign to help spread the word about Gray Matters. Staff will also begin brainstorming other ways to get the information out to the public, which could include speaking engagements, although plans are still underway.
Despite anyone’s personal opinions about marijuana, the prevention team encourages adults to do their research and remain calm when speaking to kids about underage marijuana misuse. For more information, please visit https://graymattersutah.org.
“Our main message is that we want parents to make these decisions with their teens,” Bello said. “Parents may think their teens aren’t listening, yet they’re the most influential individuals in their lives.”