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JnEverett

Prevalence of driving under the influence of cannabis has doubled in Canada since 1989, says report
12-19-06 l The Sault Star

Prevalence of driving under the influence of Cannabis has doubled since 1989 and young males in Canada are driving under the influence of Cannabis as often as or more often than they drive under the influence of alcohol, says a new research report released today by the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse, Canada’s national addictions agency.

CCSA researchers analyzed data from the 2004 Canadian Addiction Survey (CAS) – the most comprehensive profile of alcohol and other drug use in Canada since 1994 – to help fill the research gap between what we know about drugs and driving and what we know about alcohol and driving. Here are some of the findings contained in the report, entitled Driving Under the Influence of Cannabis:

• 4.8% of drivers responding to the CAS survey reported driving within two hours of using Cannabis in the previous 12 months, a figure which has more than doubled since comparable studies done in 1988 and 1989.

• Males were 3.6 times more likely than females to drive under the influence of Cannabis.

• Among those who reported driving under the influence of Cannabis in the last year, the mean number of self-reported occurrences was 24.5.

• People who reported driving under the influence of Cannabis also reported consuming higher-than-average amounts of alcohol. This is a significant point, since combining Cannabis with even small amounts of alcohol significantly increases the observed level of impairment.

Despite the increase in the prevalence of driving under the influence of Cannabis, it is not clear what impact this is having on crash-related death and injury.

“Controlled studies that have attempted to determine the risk of crash involvement associated with driving after Cannabis use have shown mixed results,” said Rita Notarandrea, CCSA’s Director of Research and Policy. “The CAS data provide us with a more accurate understanding of the prevalence of driving after Cannabis use in Canada,

but points to a gap in understanding how much of a factor this is in causing or contributing to harms such as motor vehicle crashes.”

The CAS report also cites external research suggesting that young Cannabis users may not perceive their driving ability to be adversely affected after using Cannabis, or at least less affected than after consuming alcohol. Many young people also believe that it is difficult for police to detect and charge drivers for driving after Cannabis use.

To access the full report on Driving Under the Influence of Cannabis, please visit the CCSA website at www.ccsa.ca

 

Buzzby

Two hours after I've smoked I'm cold sober. What has this got to do with impaired driving?

So test for impairment! Neither blood alcohol level (to a point) nor the presence of THC metabolites (at all) is a real indication of impairment.

"We don't really know if using cannabis causes or contributes to accidents, but we'll demonize it anyway."

Most people believe that they're more impaired than they really are on marijuana and drive much more carefully. On alcohol, people think they're NASCAR drivers.

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