FRIDAY, AUGUST 25, 2023
VOLUME 117, No.34
Mc Intosh seeking roots Page 3
Joanne Ince-Jack, pharmacist, raised concern about an increase in consumption of cannabis edibles.
www.thevincentian.com
Oscar Allen lecture Page 7
CDC should get more Page 16
EC$1.50
A musical narcotic Page 20
MRI user rates ??? Page 32
CONSUMING CANNABIS EDIBLES ON THE RISE
in collaboration with the Medicinal Cannabis Authority (MCA), InceJack noted that parents visualize their teens smoking marijuana by way of cigarette-like joints, pipes, etc. She, however, noted that the consumption of marijuana has become creative not least being through brownies (pastry), Dr. Jean-Saville Cummings, of beverages, chocolate bars the MCA , underscored that it and candies, and warned was easy to overdose on that regardless of the cannabis. method used to consume it, high amounts of by SHERON GARRAWAY tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the primary psychoactive AN UNCOMFORTABLE NUMBER ingredient in marijuana, were of young people have been being digested. ending up in the emergency The pharmacist rooms of hospitals or the court acknowledged that data on system due to their consumption teen cannabis use in SVG was of cannabis edibles. still being gathered, and This is according to referring to studies from the pharmacist Joanne Ince-Jack. USA, she said it was revealed Ince-Jack, a speaker at a that teens were consuming symposium on “The Dangers cannabis edibles to reduce the of Edibles and Teen Cannabis likelihood of being caught. Use” held at the Methodist Ince-Jack said also Church Hall on August 19th, highlighted that the use urged that more dialogue edibles has become a needed to be entered into with preference for those who do young people here. not like to smoke, such as At the event, hosted by the females, as they did not want St. Vincent and the to have their bodies carry the Grenadines Pharmacy Council
odor. She was also concerned with the marketing schemes and packaging that support the sale and use of the edibles, citing the sweet taste and colourful wrappings which far too easily attract the unsuspecting teenager. “It was easier to overdose on edibles because of over eating, as the digestive time in the body takes a much longer time,” the pharmacist warned. In the circumstances and in an effort to nip this habit in the bud, Ince-Jack called on parents, teachers and youth leaders to be observant and open to discussion with young people about the dangers of cannabis use, particularly at an early age. Chief at the Technical Department at the Medicinal Cannabis Authority, MCA Dr. Jean-Saville Cummings also advocated the need for more dialogue with youngsters about cannabis use. He noted that teen
usage was not advocated unless prescribed by a doctor but also admitted that teenagers are naturally curious and would want “to experiment.” And while he accepted that cannabis was not necessarily life threating, he, like InceJack, cautioned that it was easy to overdose on it. Notwithstanding the creeping new practices surrounding cannabis, Dr. Cummings assured that this country has been ensuring that policies have been
established that adhere to global conventions to govern medicinal cannabis. Among these was that persons who have been prescribed cannabis for health-related purposes, must have a card to verify this, allowing them to use cannabis in a safe environment. In the case of SVG, there are four legal consumption lounges - in Ratho Mill, Bequia, Georgetown and Enhams. He warned, though, that it was still illegal to smoke cannabis in public, even with a doctor’s prescription. In effect, the cultivation and consumption of cannabis remain illegal. It has not been decriminalized here. A cannabis brownie looks and taste just like your usual home-baked brownie.