If parent’s didn’t have enough already to worry about when it came to their children, now there is the possibility of cannabis candy accidentally getting into their kids’ hands.
Marijuana edibles in the hands of children can lead to devastating consequences as the intoxicating effects of the drug when taken orally can be delayed up to 90 minutes, peak a few hours later, and then may last for several hours. Some side effects include diminished concentration, decreased executive functioning, and impaired memory. Acute cannabis toxicity can show as severe anxiety, nausea, panic attacks and even delirium or psychosis.
With the potential of causing significant mental and physical disability, the last thing parents want is for their children to mistakenly consume the drug thinking it is candy.
The problem is that copycat marijuana edibles that look like candy are poisoning kids today.
Marijuana edibles had poisoned a young two-year-old who had been rushed to the emergency room in October of 2020.
“It so shocked and appalled me … the package looked almost identical to gummies that are sold as candies in the store,” said Dr. Jane Pegg, a pediatrician from Nanaimo, B.C. to CBC.
The young child’s mother had mistakenly given him the marijuana edibles thinking it was candy. It had a massive dose of THC which led to the young boy having trouble to breathe and he could not move.
The edibles belonged to the child’s grandfather, who has arthritis, and are sold under the names “Stoney Patch” and “Stoner Patch.”
The candy looks so much like the Sour Patch Kids brand that the company behind that candy, Mondelēz Canada Inc., successfully sued last January for trademark infringement.
“I don’t know why the companies that are selling these products are not being shut down, not being fined, not being charged,” said Pegg.
Pegg’s colleague, Dr. Jodi Turner, has seen similar poisonings in the same ER and has said, “Sometimes they [children] need to be kept on a monitor. You’re looking for whether or not their heart is stable. You’re looking at whether or not they develop seizures or need a ventilator to breathe.”
It’s important more than ever now as marijuana could be legalized on a federal level to keep an eye on your children’s candy stash.