A recent study has warned that marijuana edibles imitating packaging of popular snacks are extremely dangerous for children. Researchers have taken into consideration the packaging of almost 200 types of edible Marijuana products and found that almost one in 10 bore a resemblance to commercial snack foods.
Dr Danielle Ompad, the lead in the study and an associate professor of epidemiology in the School of Global Public Health at New York University, in a university news release explained that, "at first glance, most of the packages look almost exactly like familiar snacks. If these copycat cannabis products are not stored safely, there is the potential for accidental ingestion by children or adults."
Further adding, "policies to prevent cannabis packaging from appealing to children haven't stopped copycat products from entering the market — nor have food brands taking legal action against cannabis companies for copyright infringement."
The results of the study were published recently in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence.
Researchers have deduced that marijuana edibles are incredibly popular; 56% users consume edibles in states where cannabis is legal especially the youth. Additionally, observing that these "copycat" marijuana consists high levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive compound in marijuana, which go way beyond the state limits.
Experts caution that consuming edibles is extremely harmful for young adults. US Poison Control Centers addressed more than 2,000 cases of kids aged 9 years and younger for edible consumption from 2017 to 2019.
Dr Ompad and her colleagues examined packages of more than 200 edible cannabis products and discovered that 8% bore a resemblance to 13 different snack products. Out of the 13 products, one mirrored salty chips and the other twelve edible products mimicked candies or sweet snacks, like fruit chews and snacks with gummies also including rice and marshmallow treats.
An identical brand or product name of the original product was utilized by at least eight of the edibles on their packaging, with the other five making use of same names like "Stoner Patch Dummies" in place of "Sour Patch Kids." The other seven had the same cartoon or brand symbol or character as the original product in their packaging.
According to the study conducted, many states that have legitimized cannabis consumption usually restrict the amount of THC in edibles to 5mg or 10mg per dose and 100mg per package. However, information on the copycat edibles' packaging claims to contain an average of 459mg of THC with a range of 300 to 600mg per package.
Dr Ompad's advice for people that buy edibles that resemble snack foods is to "store them separately from regular snacks and out of reach of children."
She further explains, "while each package is likely intended to include multiple doses, few packages indicate the serving size or number of servings. Moreover, if we're considering 10 mg a standard dose, these products could contain an alarming 30 to 60 doses per package."
