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Secondhand marijuana exposure in a convenience sample of young children in New York City
Lodoe Sangmo1, Tanya Braune2, Bian Liu3
1Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA.
Insights
Secondhand marijuana smoke exposure is detectable in young children
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Environmental Health
- Toxicology
- Public Health
Background:
- Secondhand marijuana smoke exposure in children is a growing concern.
- Biomarkers for marijuana smoke exposure can be identified in children's urine.
- The prevalence of such exposure in young children remains unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the prevalence of secondhand marijuana smoke exposure in children aged 0-3 years.
- To identify factors associated with marijuana smoke exposure in this age group.
Main Methods:
- Urine samples were collected from 53 children (aged 0-3 years) at Mount Sinai Hospital.
- Samples were analyzed for cotinine (tobacco marker) and 11-nor-9-carboxy-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (COOH-THC), a marijuana metabolite.
- Parental surveys provided information on household smoking habits and housing type.
Main Results:
- Marijuana metabolites (COOH-THC) were detected in 20.8% of children's urine samples.
- Urinary cotinine was detected in 90.2% of samples, indicating widespread tobacco smoke exposure.
- Children with higher tobacco exposure and those living in housing where smoking was permitted were significantly more likely to have detectable marijuana metabolites.
Conclusions:
- Children are exposed to secondhand marijuana smoke, even in areas where recreational use is illegal.
- Household tobacco smoke exposure and permissive smoking environments are associated with increased marijuana smoke exposure in children.
- Further research is crucial to understand the health and developmental impacts of marijuana smoke exposure on children.
Background:
Biomarkers of exposure to marijuana smoke can be detected in the urine of children with exposure to secondhand marijuana smoke, but the prevalence is unclear.
Methods:
We studied children between the ages of 0 to 3 years who were coming in for well-child visits or hospitalized on the inpatient general pediatric unit between 2017 and 2018 at Kravis Children's Hospital at Mount Sinai. Parents completed an anonymous survey, and urine samples were analyzed for cotinine and 11-nor-9-carboxy-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (COOH-THC), a metabolite of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol.
Results:
Fifty-three children had urine samples available for analysis. COOH-THC was detectable in 20.8% of the samples analyzed and urinary cotinine was detectable in 90.2%. High levels of tobacco exposure (defined as cotinine ≥2.0 ng/ml) were significantly associated with COOH-THC detection (p < 0.01). We found that 34.8% of children who lived in attached housing where smoking was allowed within the property had detectable COOH-THC compared to 13.0% of children who lived in housing where smoking was not allowed at all.
Conclusions:
This study adds to the growing evidence that children are being exposed to marijuana smoke, even in places where recreational marijuana use is illegal. It is critical that more research be done on the impact of marijuana smoke exposure on children's health and development.
Impact:
We found that 20.8% of the 53 children recruited from Mount Sinai Hospital had detectable marijuana metabolites in their urine. Children with household tobacco smoke exposure and children who lived in attached housing where smoking was allowed on the premises were more likely to have detectable marijuana smoke metabolites. This study adds to the growing evidence that children are being exposed to marijuana smoke, even in places where marijuana remains illegal by state law. As states consider marijuana legalization, it is critical that the potential adverse health effects from marijuana exposure in children be taken into account.
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