What is Cannabis?

  • Cannabis (also known as marijuana, weed and pot) refers to a group of plants that are grown around the world, including Canada. The Cannabis plant contains many chemical substances, including over 100 “cannabinoids”.

What’s a cannabinoid?

  • Cannabinoids affect cells in the brain and the body. They can change how those cells behave and communicate with each other.

What are examples of cannabinoids?

  • THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) is a cannabinoid you may hear about the most. It is the “psychoactive” component, meaning that it is responsible for the way your brain and body respond to cannabis, including the “high” or intoxicating effect.

  • CBD (cannabidiol) is also a cannabinoid. It does not produce a “high” or intoxication, and is most often used for medicinal purposes.

What is cannabis used for?

  • Recreation
    People often use cannabis to experience feelings of relaxation and contentment.

  • Medicine
    Cannabis has been used for a variety of indications including appetite stimulation in illness, anti-seizure therapy, and pain relief.

 
How is cannabis consumed?

  • Cannabis can be consumed through smoking or vaporizing the plant-based product, or the active compounds can be extracted into edible forms and eaten.

  • Edible cannabis products can include candies, baked goods, and oils. They are available both commercially and homemade.

How does cannabis affect a child?

  • Symptoms can vary from none at all to a coma. Some children have required a breathing tube and have needed to be closely monitored in an intensive care setting.

 Other symptoms can include:

  • Vomiting

  • Agitation

  • Confusion

  • Slurred speech

  • Unsteadiness on feet

  • Drowsiness/lethargy

  • Muscle weakness

  • Slowed breathing

  • Coma

  • Seizures (rare)

Why is cannabis more dangerous for children than for adults?

There are a few possible reasons why cannabis is more dangerous for children than for adults:

  • Most exposures in children are by ingestion. The way that the body absorbs THC in an ingestion is variable and unpredictable.

  • Since children are smaller, the amount of THC per kilogram of body weight is much larger than the same amount would be in an adult.

  • The drug behaves differently and performs different actions in a child’s body vs. an adult’s.

Which cannabis products are we most concerned about?

  • Cannabis edibles bought outside of the legal supply chain.

  • Homemade cannabis edibles: dose control is very difficult without sophisticated equipment.

  • All cannabis products that are not stored properly.

What can I do to prevent an unintentional cannabis poisoning?

  • Store all cannabis products in a locked box or container, and separate from regular food and drinks. Ensure these products are labelled. Be extra careful with edible cannabis, which can be mistaken for regular food, drink and candy.

  • Always buy your cannabis products from an authorized provincial and territorial seller.

-Ontario Poison Centre. 2018

A study found that hospitalizations for pediatric cannabis poisonings increased substantially across the country. Notably, provinces that permitted the sale of cannabis edibles such as gummies, chocolates and baked goods saw an increase in hospitalizations that was more than two times higher than the province that prohibited the sale of edibles (7.5 times vs. 3.0 times, respectively, from the pre-legalization rate).

Canada has seen a 6.3 fold increase in hospitalizations for unintentional cannabis poisoning among children under the age of 10 since the legalization of recreational cannabis, according to a research letter published in the New England Journal of Medicine.