Marijuana Use Linked to Increase in Fatal Crashes

Everyone knows that driving drunk is a horrible idea, but that message doesn’t seem to be hitting home when it comes to smoking pot and driving. 

Marijuana use has been linked to a rise in fatal car crashes according to a new study published by Columbia University. From 2000-2010, the number of fatal crashes involving the use of marijuana tripled and the results could raise new concerns about the legalization of marijuana use.

Researchers from Columbia University conducted toxicological investigations of nearly 24,000 motor vehicle fatalities and concluded that marijuana use played at least some role in 12 percent of those deaths.

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Another study published last week in the New England Journal of Medicine revealed that marijuana can impair a teen’s driving while also lowering their IQ. In addition, NHTSA found in a 2010 survey that one in eight high school seniors admitted to driving after smoking marijuana. Federal data shows that nearly half of drivers fatally injured in a crash that tested positive for marijuana were under 25.

[Source: The Detroit Bureau]