Some teens smoke pot for medical needs

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 23 (UPI) -- About one-third of teens who smoke marijuana on a regular basis use it as a medication, rather than as a means of getting high, Canadian researchers said.

Joan Bottorff worked with a team of researchers from the University of British Columbia to conduct in-depth interviews with 63 marijuana-using adolescents.

Of these, 20 claimed that they used marijuana to relieve or manage health problems.

"Marijuana is perceived by some teens to be the only available alternative for those experiencing difficult health problems when legitimate medical treatments have failed or when they lack access to appropriate healthcare," Bottorff said in a statement.

The most common complaints of the teens were: depression, anxiety and stress; sleep difficulties; physical pain and problems with concentration.

"Youth who reported they had been prescribed drugs such as Ritalin, Prozac or sleeping pills, stopped using them because they did not like how these drugs made them feel or found them ineffective," Bottorff said. "For these kids, the purpose of smoking marijuana was not specifically about getting high or stoned."

Marijuana provided these adolescents with immediate relief for a variety of health concerns, Bottorff said.

The findings are published in the journal Substance Abuse, Treatment, Prevention and Policy.