800% Spike In Cannabis Poisoning After Its Legalization Among Children Aged Below 10 Yrs.

Ontario witnessed around 9X more emergency department visits each month in the kids, particularly below the age of 10, for cannabis poisoning after Canada legalized the cannabis for recreational uses as per the study published in JAMA Network Open. However, the single hospitals have reported child cannabis poisoning cases before, but this is the first study to supervise the entire region.

“We saw more frequent and severe ED visits due to cannabis poisoning in children under 10 following the legalization of cannabis, and the legalization of edible cannabis products appears to be a key factor,” said lead author Dr. Daniel Myran, a family physician, public health and preventive medicine specialist, and postdoctoral fellow at The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa Department of Family Medicine.

The research team understood and supervised all the cases in the emergency department in Ontario during the given three periods. In October 2018, the flower base cannabis production and oils were legalized. In late January 2020, after the commercialization of cannabis, edibles including gummies and chocolates, and other associated products were legalized and also became available for sale.

Also, the entire study period is from January 2016 to March 2021; there were around 522 emergency visits for cannabis poisoning in kids under the age of 10. Three years and nine months was the average age of such children.

It was quite relaxing that there were no deaths. Around 32.7% of visits need hospitalization accounting for around 171 cases, and 3.6% of cases require Intensive Care Unit machines that account for around 19 visits. The emergency visit for cannabis poisoning has grown over after the legalization of commercial edibles. Additionally, with legalization, the number of visitors that require hospitalization has significantly increased for the other two periods.

Study results:

Pre-legalization (January 2016-September 2018)

• There were 81 total ED visits.
• The average number of ED visits per month: 2.5.
• Percentage of ED visits that were hospitalized: 25%.

Legalization of cannabis flower, seed, and oil (October 2018-January 2020)

• There were 124 total ED visits.
• The average number of ED visits per month: 7.8.
• Increase in average monthly ED visits compared to pre-legalization: 3 times.
• Percentage of ED visits that were hospitalized: 24%.

Legalization of edibles and other products (February 2020-March 2021)

• Total ED visits: 317.
• The average number of ED visits per month: 22.6.
• Increase in average monthly ED visits compared to pre-legalization: 9 times.
• Percentage of ED visits that were hospitalized: 39%.

Resources stated that cannabis legalization in Canada overlapped with the coronavirus pandemic. During Covid-19, the visits for cannabis poisoning have increased. However, after the commercialization of edibles, around 10% of emergency visits for poisoning in children were associated with cannabis.

“Canada’s approach to legalization was intended to prevent increases in child cannabis poisonings through policies limiting the strength of cannabis edibles, requiring child resistant packaging and education for parents and caregivers,” said Dr. Myran. “Unfortunately, the rates we saw in our study suggest the approach has not met that goal.”

Cannabis poisoning in youth, children, and babies is a medical emergency. Caregivers can help prevent poisoning by keeping cannabis products away from food, drinks and out of the children's reach.