A top federal drug official says marijuana businesses have learned “lessons” from the alcohol and tobacco industries to market their products. The demographic that’s seeing the most rapid increase in usage rates are elderly people 65 and older, who are being “targeted” with messaging about the therapeutic benefits of cannabis, she says.
In a blog post published last week, National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Director Nora Volkow broadly argued that commercial interests are driving up rates of drug use and substance misuse disorder. While she’s long expressed concerns about criminalization as a policy, she raised a number of complaints with the commercial marijuana market that’s expanded as a result of the state-level legalization movement.
Although lawmakers and health agencies have seen progress in combating the use of other legal substances like tobacco, Volkow said the marijuana industry has “presented new opportunities for commercial interests to drive drug consumption across all ages and demographics.”
“Cannabis products are often sold in colorful packages that mimic kid-friendly snack foods, for example, making them appealing to children and to young people. Adolescents exposed to cannabis marketing have greater odds of using the drug,” she said. “The legalization of cannabis by the states and the diversification of cannabis products have led to significant increases in the number of users and the amount of cannabis consumed by them in the U.S.”
Volkow has previously recognized that data shows rates of youth marijuana use have remained stable despite her concerns about the potential impact of legalization, evidenced by multiple federally funded surveys, for example. And though she said in this latest blog post that certain cannabis products might be designed in a way that’s enticing to youth, she notes that young adults 18-30 have the highest usage rates, and there’s been a unique rise in consumption among the oldest demographic.
“This older age group is being targeted with advertising touting cannabis’ alleged therapeutic benefits,” the NIDA director said. “As expected, the expanded use of cannabis and the higher doses used have resulted in an increase in the number of individuals suffering from adverse health consequences from these exposures.”
Part of the problem, Volkow argued, is the commercial marketing of marijuana in states that have enacted legalization.
“Lessons learned from alcohol and tobacco are also being applied to the sale, marketing, and taxation of cannabis products in states that have legalized the drug for adult use, but policies vary widely by state,” she said, drawing a parallel in a way that echoes a common prohibitionist talking point about the emergence of “Big Marijuana.”
Nora’s Blog: #NIDA Director Dr. Nora Volkow discusses how commercial interests are among the social determinants that contribute to substance use and addictive behaviors. https://t.co/YZEZKsL9n1 pic.twitter.com/ep5SaVX8H1
— NIDAnews (@NIDAnews) September 27, 2024
“Needed is much more research to understand the potential risks and therapeutic applications of cannabis and to inform policy approaches that minimize cannabis’s harms, reduce the social and racial inequities associated with its criminalization, and ensure safe access for those who may benefit from it therapeutically,” she said.
“History has shown that businesses often put profits over public health, too often with tragic consequences. As we confront the rapidly evolving landscape of addictive and potentially addictive products and technologies, it is imperative that we conduct research to understand how commercial interests affect public health and individual health and well-being. Such research can help guide policies as well as inform the development of evidence-based prevention and treatment interventions.”
Volkow’s position on the potential harms of a commercial marijuana market isn’t new. But while advocates are in favor of taking steps to mitigate underage cannabis use, they feel the regulated state markets have proven effective at deterring such behavior, with safeguards such as ID checks in place to prevent access.
In any case, Volkow has maintained her stance that criminalization is not an effective alternative.
She’s previously said that the drug war “created a structurally racist system” in which Black people are treated “worse” than others. And she’s called on the government to move “away from criminalization,” arguing that the country’s failure to offer drug treatment to incarcerated people only exacerbates the ongoing opioid overdose crisis.
The post Top Federal Drug Official Claims Marijuana Businesses Are Taking ‘Lessons’ From Big Tobacco And Alcohol appeared first on Marijuana Moment.
