Posted on behalf of Elie Dolgin

It gives new meaning to term high school: Medical marijuana is reportedly being prescribed to teenagers who suffer from behavioral problems such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

The New York Times reports that a network of 20 clinics in Oakland, California has treated as many as 50 adolescents with ADHD. Up the bay, a Berkeley doctor was investigated by California’s medical board after he authorized the drug for a 16-year-old boy with the disorder.

Bestowing bud upon kids with terminal illnesses like cancer and AIDS is one thing. But with ADHD, the idea of smoking up children seems dazed and confused to many in the medical community. The drug has been linked to many psychotic symptoms, and is likely to aggravate the concentration problems seen in many ADHD kids.

Others don’t think that it’s such a half-baked idea. Marijuana might be safer than many psycho-active prescription drugs, such as Ritalin, often used to treat ADHD, some contend. And far from promoting drug use, a recent report from the Marijuana Policy Project Foundation found that teen dope smoking has not risen in states that have legalized the drug for medical purposes.

For a good round-up of peer-reviewed studies both supporting and opposing medical marijuana usage in children with ADHD, autism or cancer, see the debate at ProCon.org.

Photo by Torben Bjørn Hansen