Hi, CV!

Because we’re preventionists, I wanted to alert you to a new app called MyShakes, an earthquake warning system developed by scientists at UC Berkeley. It works on iPhones and androids. How well it works will be tested by Mother Nature, but why not have as much advance warning as possible?

Speaking of advance warning, why not do your best to attend our March 4 Strategic Partners meeting? We are going to hear from two experts working in the prevention field. One will talk about the upcoming ballot measure to legalize adult use of marijuana. The other is working to keep alcohol out of the hands of minors.

You know that we are up against wealthy forces and popular opinion regarding marijuana legalization. Since states have legalized marijuana use, and medical marijuana is ubiquitous, kids don’t think anything is wrong with its use, but they are wrong. Researchers at the Dallas Center for Brain Health did an MRI scan of the heads of 42 heavy marijuana users aged 21 to 50. Twenty-two of those people said they’d first smoked pot before they were 16. The rest started smoking after age 19.  What they found was the early smokers had fewer markers of normal brain development in their prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain controlling willpower, focus and planning skills (Cosmopolitan, Feb. 11, 2016).

As for alcohol, our young people are constantly bombarded by advertisements promoting the “great fun” they’ll have when beer and alcohol are consumed. Many studies show the direct correlation between early exposure and early alcohol use. One solution to lessen media exposure, according to researchers at Johns Hopkins University, is to have alcohol makers figure out which of their television ad campaigns, television networks and time slots have exposed more underage people to their ads and then change marketing buys accordingly (Vox, Feb. 4, 2016).

CV Alliance is on the case, and we need your help! Please join us on Friday, March 4 from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. at USC Verdugo Hills Hospital 4th Floor Council Rooms. Everyone is welcome! RSVP info@cv-alliance.org.

Suzy Jacobs, Executive Director,
CV Alliance
3516 N. Verdugo Road
Glendale, CA 91208 (818) 646-7867
cv-alliance.org/