The number of children who accidentally ingested THC edibles increased 29 times since 2010: report
- In 2020, poison control centers received 554 calls about children accidentally ingesting THC edibles.
- A decade prior, they received just 19 such calls, according to The Washington Post.
- Experts attributed the spike to the rise in legal marijuana across the US.
Poison control centers in 2020 received 554 calls related to children accidentally ingesting THC edibles, a number more than 29 times higher than the number of calls it received a decade ago, The Washington Post reported.
According to the report, poison control centers in the US last year reported 554 cases of children accidentally ingesting their parents THC edibles, compared to 19 similar cases in 2010 before recreational marijuana had been legalized by any state in the US.
Around 400 reported cases involved children under the age of five, according to the report.
Poison control officials told the Washington Post that spikes can be attributed to when states legalize marijuana for recreational use. The legalization of recreational marijuana has been linked to a rise in emergency room cases of children accidentally consuming THC products.
ABC News previously reported that in Colorado, where the drug was legalized in 2014, cannabis-related poison control cases per year rose by 34% each year on average. According to The Post's report, when Massachusetts legalized recreational marijuana in 2018, there were 52 cases of accidental ingestion in emergency rooms. In 2020, there were 257 cases.
Marijuana is popularly consumed in brownies, cookies, gummies, or other candies, which can lead to concerns of accidental consumption among children, Insider previously reported.
When children accidentally ingest marijuana, they can become dizzy and lose their balance, have trouble staying awake, become paranoid or confused, or experience an increased heart rate, according to the report. The long-term effects of adolescent marijuana consumption are not known, since it is illegal and has not been thoroughly studied.
Diane Calello, executive and medical director of the New Jersey Poison Control Center told The Washington Post that similar packaging of regular candy products and marijuana products can lead to confusion and accidental ingestion by minors.
Some states with legalized marijuana have set guidelines to set related products from too closely resembling products that do not contain THC. As The Post noted, California doesn't permit edibles shaped like people or animals, and North Dakota prohibits the sale of all edibles entirely. Other states, like Utah, allow certain edibles while prohibiting sweet treats like brownies or candy.
The most recent state to legalize recreational marijuana was New York at the end of March. As Insider previously reported, 16 states and Washington, DC, have legalized marijuana for adults over the age of 21. It's legal for medical use in 36 states.