Tweens and Teens: What You Don’t Know About the Brain Can Hurt Them

New brain imaging technologies like the fMRI and SPECT Scans are still just scratching the surface of what there is to know about the human brain. And yet, the revelations so far (new brain imaging technologies were cited as one of the Top Ten Medical Advances of the Decade in 2009) have been nothing short of astounding. “Brain research” now makes the radio news and television documentaries regularly. In 2013, President Obama announced a “decade of the brain,” and allocated $100 million to “mapping” it. Brain research is attracting attention because of its implications in fields as diverse as law, marketing, education, criminology, philosophy, ethics. We, as parents and caregivers, are interested in the implications of brain research in the fields of human development and addictions.

With the insights provided by brain science, addictions research now defines addiction as “a chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences.” Why a brain disease? “Because drugs change the brain - they change its structure and how it works.” In addition, because the brains of adolescents are still developing, teens “are at greater risk of drug abuse and addiction than the general population.”1

Tweens and Teens: What You Don’t Know About The Brain Can Hurt Them provides insight into:

1. what is normal teen brain development; 2. why new brain research defines addiction as a brain disease to which teens are particularly susceptible; 3. what studies have shown about marijuana and how it affects the teen brain; and 4. how parents and other healthy adults can support their teen’s brain development to better prepare them for a healthy adult life.

1. What is normal teen brain development? The human brain continues to develop into ▸ The Teen Brain Still Under Construction, adulthood and undergoes dramatic changes National Institute of Mental Health during adolescence. In the above image, blue This is a broad brush brochure written in represents the maturation of brain areas. layperson terms. One of the brain areas still maturing during 2. Why are adolescents particularly susceptible to adolescence is the prefrontal cortex– the part of the brain disease of addiction? the brain that enables us to assess situations, Adolescent brains, primed for learning, are make sound decisions, and keep our emotions particularly susceptible to addiction. and desires under control. The fact that this ▸ Marijuana: Facts Parents Need to Know and critical part of an adolescent's brain is still a Marijuana: Facts for Teens, both from the work in progress puts them at increased risk for National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA), poor decisions (such as trying drugs or National Institute of Health (NIH) continuing abuse). Introducing drugs while the Two short booklets for parents and children to brain is still developing may have profound and review the scientific facts about marijuana. long-lasting consequences. (source: NIDA) ▸ Drugs, Brains and Behavior: The Science of Addiction (2010) and Marijuana Abuse: Research Report Series (2012) by the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) Groundbreaking discoveries about the brain have revolutionized our understanding of drug addiction. ▸ What Parents Need to Know About Addiction and the Adolescent Brain , by Joseph A. Califano, Jr., Founder and Chairman of the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University This is a layperson friendly essay by the former U.S. Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare ▸ The Teen Brain: Primed to Learn, Primed to Take Risks, by Jay N. Giedd, M.D. During adolescence the brain’s ability to change is especially pronounced—and that can be a double-edged sword. Jay Giedd and colleagues at the National Institute of Mental Health are primary sources for information about the complex changes that the brain undergoes during adolescence and the risks and opportunities associated with them. ▸ Understanding Adolescent Brain Development and Its Implications for the Clinician by Aaron M. White, PhD While this essay is intended for the clinician, it is accessible to the layperson.

▸ NIDA for Teens: Facts on Drugs, Brain and Addiction, share this interactive website for teens with your tweens and teens.

3. A sampling of studies and reports: marijuana affects teens and the teen brain. Age of onset, or “first use,” is a determining factor in the risks associated with marijuana use. While studies show that 9% of the general population who smoke marijuana will become dependant/addicted, when marijuana use begins in adolescence, 17% of users become dependant/addicted. ▸ Adolescent marijuana use leaves lasting mental deficits. Science Daily reports on New Zealand study of adolescent onset marijuana users and an 8 point decline in IQ. To read the findings in more detail, see: Persistent cannabis users show neuropsychological decline from childhood to midlife, ▸ Teens who smoke pot at risk for later schizophrenia, psychosis, Harvard Health Publications, Harvard Medical School Teenagers and young adults who use marijuana may be messing with their heads in ways they don’t intend.

SPECT Scans showing loss of brain functionality in teen marijuana users. Studies indicate that adolescent onset persistent cannabis users can lose up to 8 IQ points. While adult onset users’ neuropsychological functioning appear to be fully restorable with cessation of marijuana use, cessation of use does not fully restore neuropsychological functioning among adolescent onset former persistent cannabis users. See Persistent cannabis users show neuropsychological decline from childhood to midlife. ▸ Marijuana Use Causes Brain Damage Confirmed. The brain's white matter is responsible for information passed between different areas of the brain. Researchers found that there was more than 80 percent reduction of white matter in the brains of adolescent users. ▸ Chronic alcohol and marijuana use during youth can compromise white-matter integrity, Science Daily reports on the combined use of alcohol and marijuana use. ▸ Research shows adverse effects of marijuana on teens as drug use among students appears to be rising, by Katie Kerwin McCrimmon at EdNewsColorado.org Effects on teens since medical marijuana legislation was passed in Colorado. 4. How parents and other healthy adult caregivers can support their teen’s brain development to better prepare them for adult life. Marijuana-Free: Navigating the Teen Years is intended to provide resources for the parent or caregiver, including: ▸ The 40 Developmental Assets: Lend your teen your frontal lobes and your superb adult brain circuitry during adolescence by providing support, establishing boundaries and expectations, and role modeling the internal characteristics you want to see developed in them. For more information about the 40 Developmental Assets, see www.search-institute.org and/or “like” Tri- Town Youth Services on Facebook to receive regular developmental asset updates and insights. ▸ Talking About Issues of Concern: A communication tool ▸ Peer Pressure: A Call to Action: Can parents and other adult caregivers work together to support positive peer influence? 1 From Drugs, Brains and Behavior, The Science of Addiction, online from NIDA at http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/science-addiction/drug-abuse-addiction