Valley doctors worried about kids eating medical marijuana edibles

PHOENIX — With medical marijuana now more available, Valley hospitals are warning that kids are finding their parent’s brownies in the kitchen and eating them, without knowing what they really are.

Doctors are worried about kids getting into the drug.

“Particularly the edibles,” said Dr. Frank Lovecchio of the Banner Poison and Drug Information Center. “The edibles look so much like what kids would normally eat, like a lollipop or ice cream.”

He said the pot is so potent that some kids have had to be hospitalized.

“We’ve admitted a few that have become comatose and hard to arouse,” said Lovecchio. “They’re not quite needing to be put on a respirator, but they’ve become very sick.

“Three years ago, we saw zero. We saw no cases. Now, we’ve probably admitted a few kids who have become comatose. Three or four of them have been in a deep coma. But the uptick has been a few dozen cases in the past year.”

Part of the problem is that the edibles don’t come in a childproof container. Lovecchio said that parents should explain to their kids that the goodies are only for adults, and then show them the regular treats that young ones can eat.

He said medical marijuana users should keep their stash in a childproof container and out of their kids’ reach.