Now that I-1068, an initiative to legalize marijuana in the state of Washington, will be on the ballot in November, it is important to take a look at the effects of marijuana on a person’s health so that you can choose wisely when you cast your vote. Here is a brief list of side effects.

Moods and Depression

• A number of studies have shown an association between chronic marijuana use and increased rates of anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation, and schizophrenia (NIDA, 2009).

Memory, perception and problem solving

• Heavy marijuana use impairs a person’s ability to form memories, recall events, and shift attention from one thing to another. It also disrupts coordination and balance by binding to receptors in the cerebellum and basal ganglia (NIDA, 2005).

Physical

• With marijuana in the blood stream, the ability of the blood to carry oxygen is restricted. This means that vital oxygen is not flowing to the heart properly. This can lead to elevated heart rate and higher blood pressure. Continued use of marijuana can ultimately increase the chances of heart attack. www.marijuanaaddictiontreatment.org

• Marijuana contains 50-70% more carcinogenic hydrocarbons than tobacco smoke (NIDA, 2005).

• Long-term effects of marijuana use and abuse can result in lung and throat cancer, as well as severe respiratory illnesses and problems. www.marijuanaaddictiontreatment.org

Social/School/Work

• Studies have shown that marijuana smokers have increased absences, accidents, higher worker compensation claims, and job turnovers (NIDA, 2009).

• Students who smoke marijuana get lower grades and are less likely to graduate from high school, compared with their non-smoking peers, (NIDA, 2009)

Addiction/Dependence

• The majority of youth admitted to DASA-funded treatment list marijuana as their primary drug of choice. (DSHS Trends Report, 2008).

• “Cannabis withdrawal is caused by cessation of cannabis use that has been heavy and prolonged. It results in clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning… (DSM-V draft, 2010)

• Street Marijuana that is readily available in the 2000’s is 5-14 times stronger than the marijuana of the ‘60s and ‘70s. (Inaba and Cohen, 2004).

Compiled by staff of Spokane County Community Services, Housing and Community Development Department.

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As the end of the decade nears 20 percent more American children are living in poverty than in 2000, and the South leads the nation in the number of children living in low income and poor families, according to researchers at the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP), part of Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health.

NCCP says that 44 percent of children in the South – 12.2 million – live in low-income families; compared to 41 percent of children in the West; 38 percent of children in the Midwest; and 34 percent of children in the Northeast.

“These are challenging economic times for America’s families. Low- and moderate-income workers are seeing their wages stagnate or decline, while the cost of basic necessities continues to rise,” says NCCP’s Vanessa Wight, PhD, who co-authored the report with research analyst Michelle Chau. “We are particularly concerned about the profound effect economic hardship can have on children. We found that children’s poverty rates vary greatly, depending on where people live.”

The U.S. federal poverty level (FPL) for 2009 is $22,050 for a family of four; low-income is considered anything below two times FPL. The findings are detailed in “Basic Facts About Low-income Children,” NCCP’s multi-part annual collection of analyses on low-income families, available free online at http://www.nccp.org/publications/pub_892.html.

While children make up a quarter of America’s population, they account for more than 40 percent of the overall low-income population, explains Wight. NCCP analyzed a variety of factors that distinguish low-income and poor children from their less disadvantaged counterparts. In addition to geographic location, other factors contribute significantly to a child’s experiences with economic insecurity. Among them:

Race:

• 27 percent of white children – 11.2 million – live in low-income families.
• 61 percent of black children – 6.4 million – live in low-income families.
• 31 percent of Asian children – one million – live in low-income families.
• 57 percent of American Indian children – 0.3 million – live in low-income families.
• 42 percent of children of some other race – 0.9 million – live in low-income families.
• 62 percent of Hispanic children – 10.1 million – live in low-income families.

Health insurance:

• 16 percent of children living in low-income families – 4.9 million – are uninsured.
• 32 percent of children living in low-income families – 9.5 million – are covered by private insurers.
• 49 percent of children living in low-income families – 14.6 million – are covered by Medicaid.
• 22 percent of children living in low-income families – 6.5 million – are covered by their state’s Children Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).

Parental education:

• 25 percent of children with at least one parent who has some college or more education – 11.9 million – live in low-income families.
• 85 percent of children with parents who have less than a high-school degree – 7.2 million – live in low-income families.
• 60 percent of children with parents who have no more than a high school degree – 10.7 million – live in low-income families.

Source: The National Center for Children in Poverty

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Child advocate is an exceptionally extensive term that may refer to a number of people who work to protect children and advocate on their behalf. These people may do this work professionally or they could be amateurs, albeit highly experienced. Numerous state agencies have some form of child advocacy service, and some private organizations offer child advocate services too. Perhaps, the very nature of children creates the need for adults to protect them in many settings.

In households where children are treated with dignity and fairness, their number one advocates are their parents. Parents may intervene at schools, in relationships with friends, or in many other ways. Children are, to an extent, voiceless, and they need the loving protection of their parents to get the best care and remain safe. These are the amateur advocates, but many are quite skilled in making decisions in the best interest of their children.

Another group of advocates for kids are teachers, and again, they have to be skilled teachers that are working in the best interest of their students. They may actually advocate for student’s rights with parents. Both parent and teacher advocates must work hard to find happy mediums where child development and child well-being are tantamount.

At the school setting, others advocate for children too, including those who take part in special education evaluation. A child advocate at this level can analyze particular strengths and advocate for or recommend modifications to curriculum or accommodations that may help that child learn better in the school setting. It’s also important to note that most school employees advocate for children that are being harmed in another way. Should they suspect sexual or physical abuse, they’re often legally bound to report it.

When abuse of any kind is reported, children continue to need a supportive child advocate. This might be someone from a department of social work or other family oriented organizations that helps to protect and preserve the child’s interests through investigatory processes and thereafter. Children who then enter “the system” of foster care need at least one person, and preferably more, on their side should they encounter problems, which is not unlikely.

In the US, many states have special child advocate programs that are separate from any form of social services or child welfare department. People employed in these programs could listen to concerns raised by children, by their foster parents, or by social workers that review foster parenting. Social workers also have advocacy roles and sometimes the ability to remove children from different types of care if the child’s needs are not adequately met.

Private child advocate types may come in different forms. Attorneys who represent children accused of crimes are these children’s advocates. Some non-profit private organizations may step in different steps of the process to see that children are given adequate support.