DAYTON — Health officials are seeing a dramatic rise in unintentional marijuana ingestions by children in Ohio.
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News Center 7′s Taylor Robertson is looking into the concerning rise. She’ll have the latest tonight on News Center 7 at 6:00.
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A new report from Dayton Children’s Hospital shows that the number of visits to the hospital’s emergency department involving kids who accidentally consumed or were exposed to cannabis products went up by 571 percent from 2019 to 2023 compared to the previous period.
Licensed sales of medical marijuana were legalized in Ohio in 2019. Ohioans voted to legalize adult-use recreational marijuana in November 2023 and that took effect on August 6.
So far this year, Dayton Children’s Emergency Department has seen 66 cases of unintentional cannabis-related ingestions, 13 of which have happened since Aug. 6. In 2023, they had a total of 47 unintentional ingestions.
“Edible marijuana products can look just like regular candies and snacks, making them incredibly dangerous for children,” said Abbey Pettiford, Injury Prevention Outreach Supervisor at Dayton Children’s. “Just one marijuana cookie or candy bar can contain several times the recommended adult dose of THC, leading to serious overdose effects in children.”
Dayton Children’s reminds parents, guardians, and caregivers to store any cannabis products up and out of sight of children and to use a locking bag or box for safe storage.
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