One Illinois county may be ahead of the curve with warning signs that link marijuana use with potential suicide.
Citing national studies and local statistics, McHenry County requires marijuana dispensaries to post warnings. The signs state that cannabis use may lead to mental health problems, including increased thoughts of suicide.
Signs must be posted prominently and state “WARNING: Cannabis use may contribute to mental health problems, including psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia, increased thoughts of suicide and suicide attempts, anxiety, and depression. Risk is greatest for frequent users.”
Will Jones, community and outreach associate at Smart Approaches to Marijuana, said there are more and more stories of suicide victims which refer to marijuana use as the reason they’ve ended their lives.
“Things like notes where we see the kid write things like marijuana killed my soul and ruined my brain, and seeing multiple kids write almost verbatim the same type of note, that’s when it starts to get really kind of eerie, like, what’s going on?” Jones said.
In 2014, Colorado became the first U.S. state to legalize marijuana. Ten years later, Jones said marijuana is now the number-one intoxicant in youth suicides.
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