Policy and Advocacy: Mythbusters

If we are to believe recent media hype about the link between cannabis and educational failure, the future for our youth is bleak indeed. Mythbusters digs behind the headlines to weed out the truth.

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“Potheads fail at school.” “Early stoners lose education.” “Smoke dope and become one, study warns.” These headlines all appeared on various high-profile New Zealand media outlets in response to new research evaluating cannabis use and educational achievement. If these claims are true, New Zealand is in serious trouble.

Daylight saving is over, and the shorter colder days make snuggling on the couch with takeaways and a bottle of wine much more tempting than getting outside to exercise. The winter padding is setting in, and rising obesity prevalence figures suggest this padding will be permanent for many. Is our national weight gain related to changes in alcohol consumption? What effect does alcohol really have on our waistlines?

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Drug users are giving free samples of P with marijuana teenagers bought.[1] Tinny houses are one of the main methods of cannabis distribution to young people and police have previously voiced concern that other drugs such as methamphetamine, known as P, have been pushed through their established channels.[2] The discovery of gangs selling cannabis laced with P to teenagers has spurred on Auckland police in the war against the cannabis drug trade. [3]

Who says people undergoing addiction treatment can't give up smoking? Mythbusters reveals new evidence and research challenging the myths that have kept smoking interventions out of substance abuse programmes for so long.

"France is often depicted as ‘a country where the natives drink, sing and dance till the wee small hours of the morning without experiencing any problem’." [1] "One does not see binge drinking in countries like France… where children and young people have grown up with a responsible attitude towards alcohol." [2]

Exactly how much do problems with alcohol and other drugs contribute to crime? And how do we know? We thought it was a good opportunity to bust a myth – or at least take a closer look at the numbers in our own recent story.

"Glass of wine aids memory" Auckland University Press release, 26 September 2007

"Don't forget: Drink a beer - or two - daily" Scientific American, 26 September 2007...

With the Misuse of Drugs Act and UN drug control reviews, Mythbuster wondered how successful other countries have been with drug policies.

Mythbusters always enjoy a grain of salt or two while reading media stories about rampant methamphetamine epidemics. However, we do concede the drug is quickly addictive and incredibly difficult for addicts to give up.

"People are drinking more, because people tend to drink more during tough times." A US Beverage analyst, 2008

"It is an article of folk wisdom that heavy drinking increases during economic downturns: when people lose their jobs, they turn to alcohol." Business Week, 2007