Should You Tell Your 7-Year-Old About Your Weed Gummies?

"The signs of pediatric cannabis poisoning that parents usually notice first are sleepiness and strangeness. Their child is acting off, parents say. Their kid seems slowed, confused. Some of them vomit. Some can't stay awake, or sit up, or support their own weight when trying to walk. Some kids and teens skip these relatively benign symptoms and sink into psychosis, ranting and screaming and fighting paranoid delusions while parents look on helplessly."

"In the most terrifying cases, the central nervous system is depressed so profoundly that the child slips into a coma or the automatic process of breathing breaks down, requiring a ventilator. The brain's so-called seizure threshold may also be lowered, resulting in convulsions that can send kids to the ICU. As marijuana has been legalized or decriminalized across the country, there has been"

"a 1,375 percent increase among children under 6 years old in accidental edible-ingestion cases like these. In the past year alone, 9,249 incidents of pediatric edible-cannabis poisonings were reported, 55 percent of which affected kids 5 years old or younger. These cases involve inadvertent ingestion of a THC-infused edible (or several) that a small child mistakes for regular food. The physicians I spoke to say the most common formulation is gummies - they're cute, familiar, and often sold in colorful, kid-enticing packaging."

Sleepiness, confusion, vomiting, inability to stay awake or support weight, psychosis, coma, respiratory failure, and seizures are signs of pediatric cannabis poisoning. Accidental ingestion of THC edibles has risen dramatically with legalization, including a 1,375 percent increase among children under 6 and 9,249 reported pediatric edible-cannabis poisonings in the past year, 55 percent affecting kids five or younger. Gummies are the most common formulation due to colorful, child-enticing packaging. Nicotine products like colorful vapes and pouch tins pose similar risks, with 134,663 nicotine-ingestion incidents reported in children under six between 2010 and 2023.

Read at Intelligencer