THC and Pregnancy: No-profit gives signs to pot businesses

Nonprofit gives signs to pot businesses warning pregnant, breastfeeding women

Colorado law requires marijuana stores to post warnings starting Jan. 1 about THC risks

A Colorado-based nonprofit that advocates for children is mailing warning signs to all 774 marijuana store locations around the state to caution pregnant or breastfeeding customers about the drug’s risks.

Smart Colorado is providing the signs for free to help the marijuana businesses comply with a new state law which requires warning signs be posted prominently starting Jan. 1. Smart Colorado advocated at the Colorado General Assembly for passage of the law.

Smart Colorado works to make protecting children a top priority in marijuana policy and education.

The U.S. Surgeon General and other state and national health authorities say it’s not safe to use marijuana during pregnancy or while breastfeeding. Yet in a 2018 study Colorado researchers found that 69 percent of dispensaries advised a researcher posing as a pregnant woman in her first trimester to use marijuana to treat morning sickness.

THC, the main mood-altering chemical in marijuana, is bad for babies and can be passed along to them during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

“We determined that the state was not providing signage to help Colorado’s marijuana businesses comply with the new law requiring the warning signs so we took the initiative to mail out signs at no cost to the dispensaries,” said Henny Lasley, executive director of Smart Colorado. “It’s important that these fact-based warning messages be prominently placed to counter widespread misinformation that puts the littlest Coloradans at risk.”

A copy of the letter :