WICOMICO COUNTY, Md. — As families gather during the holiday season, homes are often filled with children. That means adults should take extra precautions when it comes to cannabis edibles.

Sweets and Christmas tend to go hand in hand: milk and cookies, gingerbread houses and candy canes. But cannabis-infused edibles can look just as appealing to kids, and that can pose a serious risk.

John Dennis, EMS Lieutenant for the City of Salisbury, says edibles often resemble candy or treats children already enjoy.

“They come in odd shapes that they like, and they’re more apt to eat something like that,” said Dennis. “And the problem is, they won’t just eat one, they’ll eat the whole pot.”

Now, this isn’t an attempt to dampen holiday cheer, rather an endeafvour to shed light on serious issue that, unfortunately, does happen. 

A study shared by the National Institutes of Health found that in 2017, 207 children under the age of six accidentally ingested edibles. By 2021, that number jumped to more than 3,000, representing an increase of 1,375%.

Children are also far more vulnerable to the effects of THC than adults, making these incidents particularly dangerous.

“It all depends on how much they take,” said Dennis. “By all means, if they ingest any amount, please contact poison control, contact the EMS. They can do an evaluation and then they can go from there.”

Dennis says another option is taking a child directly to the emergency room if there’s concern about ingestion.

As a precaution, he encourages adults to store edibles in elevated, hard-to-reach places and to keep them in their original packaging, which is often intentionally difficult for children to open.

Dennis says taking those steps can help prevent an uncomfortable phone call poison control or an unexpected trip to the emergency room during the holiday season.