Manon Fossat 2:19 p.m., December 01, 2021

Cannabis use is becoming commonplace among 15-24 year olds.

In any case, this is one of the lessons of an Ifop survey for High Society carried out among 1,205 young people.

Guest of Romain Desarbres on Europe Midi on Wednesday, the president of the French Federation of Addictology, Amine Benyamina regretted that there is no real prevention policy in France. 

INTERVIEW

According to an Ifop study for High Society, more than 47% of French people aged 15 to 24 have smoked cannabis at least once in their life.

A figure that has almost doubled in 20 years.

Whether in the evening, at work, at home, or even before sex, cannabis has inserted itself in a few years into the entire social fabric of youth.

Invited on Europe Midi, Amine Benyamina, head of the department of psychiatry and addictology at the University Hospital Paul-Brousse (AP-HP), and president of the French Federation of addictology, explained that this investigation only confirms data already known.

He regretted the few preventive measures taken in relation to the consumption of cannabis.

"Catastrophic consequences"

"I don't see a lot of preventive measures. What I've been seeing for some time is mainly messages from the Interior Ministry on criminalization and prohibition. Assuming that it is a product prohibited, we think that there may not be a prevention policy to put in place. But the reality is quite different, "he said. 

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"Cannabis infuses all layers of society, the traffic is very powerful with catastrophic consequences on young people and on society", continued Amine Benyamina before calling for real measures to fight against its consumption.

"You have to have a real public health discourse."

Necessary preventive measures

According to him, the use of cannabis among 15-24 year olds has more consequences in the professional environment, but not only.

"When you consume every day and you realize that you are not very efficient it starts to be a problem. And for the youngest there is also a risk of dropping out of school," he said.

"The current prohibition is a sprinkling that makes no sense, with a total absence of prevention and real information about the product and the risks involved."

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This trivialization is all the more dangerous as young people are more at risk of developing psychiatric illnesses, other addictions, or of becoming socially isolated because of cannabis.

Especially since the Ifop study reveals that when the risks are known, thanks to prevention campaigns, a third of those polled say they have stopped or reduced their consumption.