YAY! SCIENTIST SAY THAT THC LEVELS ARE AT AN ALL TIME HIGH!

Marijuana potency has hit an all-time high, scientists say, based on the concentration of the psychoactive ingredient THC.

At the University of Mississippi's Potency Monitoring Project, where thousands of samples of seized marijuana are tested every year, levels of THC have eclipsed 30 percent.

The average THC during 2008 was 10.1%, according to Mahmoud ElSohly, director of Ole Miss's pot project. Compare that to 7.3% in 2007 and under 4% in 1983.

THC concentrations, climbing for three decades, will continue to rise before leveling off at an average of 15% or 16% in five to 10 years, ElSohly predicted.

Experts feared that inexperienced pot tokers may not moderate their intake and possibly suffer from paranoia, irritability and other negative effects.

Potent marijuana poses significant risk to the developing adolescent brain, said Edward Jurith, acting director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

"The children I'm most worried about are children who are heavy users ... people who use it on a daily basis," said Dr. Lawrence Brain, a child psychiatrist in Maryland.

"Telling them it's 10% -- three times more potent than what their parents smoked -- is not an argument they are likely to buy into or to even utilize in any constructive sort of way.



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