Kids Consuming Edibles at an Alarming Rate

David Pierce CNW Staff Writer

The Illinois Poison Center (IPC) is alerting parents to keep food mixed with THC out of their kids’ reach. According to a study by the IPC, children eating edibles increased from 5 to 232 cases from 2017 to 2021 in children aged 5 and younger. That’s a 4500% increase. Medical Director, Dr. Michael Wahl said most of the cases happened in 2020 and 2021, because the legalization of marijuana, and the pandemic caused children to be present at home to do remote learning.

Those factors coupled with the edibles appearing as normal snacks and sometimes packaged as popular brands such as Sour Patches, and Nerds. “If there were cannabis edibles in the house, mistakes can occur when kids thought they were real gummies, real chips, or real cookies as opposed to drug-infused sweet treats,” Wahl said.

Wahl said some parents were careless leaving edibles sitting out in their kitchen due to them being everyday snacks infused with marijuana, but he encourages families to still prioritize the substance as a drug.

“They [kids] will get up on counters and get into cabinets to get those sweet treats they saw their parents using,” Wahl said. “People think of it as food that has been infused with a drug, but in reality, it is a drug where food is the delivery vehicle”.

Wahl continued by saying how children under the age of 5 will eat “monstrous” amounts of edible doses to fulfill a craving. All while not realizing what they’re eating is intoxicating. “But what child is going to stop at one gummy? They’re going to eat the whole package,” Wahl said. Wahl urges families to be proactive in keeping edibles away from their children by making them unidentifiable.

“Store [edibles] in dark, opaque containers. Not clear, so kids can’t see what’s in it,” Wahl said. “Also, a container that has no pictures. Most kids at this age (3) can’t read, but they can see and understand the picture of a gummy.” No deaths were reported, but doctors also encourage parents to ask babysitters if they use edibles, so the caregiver knows to keep the THC-infused food away from children. Wahl added parents shouldn’t be seen using the edibles as well.