90% of marijuana-using parents said their pediatrician never asked about their use
Among 167 marijuana-using caregivers at a Colorado children's hospital, only 5.4% reported that their child's pediatrician had ever asked about caregiver marijuana use.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
Of 1,500 caregivers surveyed, 167 (11%) reported using marijuana. Among marijuana-using caregivers who responded, 149 (90.3%) said their pediatrician had never inquired about their marijuana use, 9 (5.4%) said yes, and 7 (4.2%) were unsure.
Key Numbers
1,500 caregivers surveyed. 167 (11%) used marijuana. Of those, 90.3% said pediatrician never asked, 5.4% said yes, 4.2% unsure.
How They Did This
Cross-sectional convenience sample survey of 1,500 caregivers presenting to the Children's Hospital Colorado Pediatric Emergency Department between December 2015 and July 2017. Asked about caregiver marijuana use and whether their child's pediatrician had ever inquired about it.
Why This Research Matters
In Colorado, where recreational cannabis is legal, secondhand cannabis smoke exposure to children is a real concern. If 90% of marijuana-using parents report never being asked about their use, pediatricians are missing opportunities for harm reduction counseling.
The Bigger Picture
Pediatricians routinely screen for tobacco and alcohol use but appear to lag far behind on marijuana screening, even in states where use is legal. As cannabis normalization continues, this gap in clinical practice could leave children unprotected from secondhand exposure.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
Convenience sample from a single emergency department. Self-reported data. Colorado-specific context may not generalize. Survey did not assess actual secondhand exposure levels or child health outcomes.
Questions This Raises
- ?Would pediatrician screening change caregiver behavior?
- ?What barriers prevent pediatricians from asking about cannabis use?
- ?Is secondhand cannabis smoke exposure causing measurable harm in children?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- 90.3% of marijuana-using parents said pediatrician never asked about their use
- Evidence Grade:
- Moderate sample but convenience sampling from a single site. Highlights a screening gap rather than measuring outcomes.
- Study Age:
- 2021 publication with data from 2015-2017 in Colorado.
- Original Title:
- Are marijuana-using caregivers being asked about their marijuana use by their child's pediatrician?
- Published In:
- Preventive medicine reports, 24, 101548 (2021)
- Authors:
- Johnson, Adam B(2), Watson, Dana B
- Database ID:
- RTHC-03224
Evidence Hierarchy
A snapshot of a population at one point in time.
What do these levels mean? →Frequently Asked Questions
How common was marijuana use among parents in this study?
About 11% (167 out of 1,500) of caregivers surveyed at a Colorado children's hospital reported using marijuana.
Why should pediatricians ask about parent marijuana use?
Secondhand marijuana smoke exposure can affect children, and marijuana-using parents may benefit from harm reduction counseling about safe storage and minimizing child exposure.
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Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-03224APA
Johnson, Adam B; Watson, Dana B. (2021). Are marijuana-using caregivers being asked about their marijuana use by their child's pediatrician?. Preventive medicine reports, 24, 101548. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2021.101548
MLA
Johnson, Adam B, et al. "Are marijuana-using caregivers being asked about their marijuana use by their child's pediatrician?." Preventive medicine reports, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2021.101548
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "Are marijuana-using caregivers being asked about their marij..." RTHC-03224. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/johnson-2021-are-marijuanausing-caregivers-being
Access the Original Study
Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkTHC research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.