1. Adolescent Brain Development
What it means to you.

2. Executive Function Skills Check-In
Abstract; conceptual understanding
Impulse Control
Problem-Solving
Decision-Making
Judgment
Emotion Regulation
Frustration Tolerance
Ability to Feel Empathy

3. “has a well-developed accelerator but only a partly developed
PIR Training, January 31, Katie Compton, CFLE Parent Educator,
A teenager’s brain
“has a well-developed accelerator but only a partly developed
brake.”
Laurence
Steinberg

4. PIR Training, January 31, 2012 Katie Compton, CFLE Parent Educator, kcompton@austinrecovery.org
200 Billion Neurons
By age 6!

5. PIR Training, January 31, 2012 Katie Compton, CFLE Parent Educator, kcompton@austinrecovery.org
AGE
200
100

6. PIR Training, January 31, 2012 Katie Compton, CFLE Parent Educator, kcompton@austinrecovery.org

7. PIR Training, January 31, 2012 Katie Compton, CFLE Parent Educator, kcompton@austinrecovery.org

8. Why Do We Lose 50% of Our Brain Cells? To make room for myelin.
PIR Training, January 31, Katie Compton, CFLE Parent Educator,
Why Do We Lose 50% of Our Brain Cells? To make room for myelin.
You tube

9. Myelin = Processing Speed

10. USE IT OR LOSE IT PRINCIPLE
PIR Training, January 31, Katie Compton, CFLE Parent Educator,
USE IT OR LOSE IT PRINCIPLE
Pruning (Apoptosis) clears out unneeded wiring to make way for more efficient and faster information-processing (thicker myelin)

11. PIR Training, January 31, 2012 Katie Compton, CFLE Parent Educator, kcompton@austinrecovery.org
From the Illinois Coalition Aginst Domestic Violence newsletter, spring 2000

14. Prefrontal Cortex: Directs our judgment &
decision-making (rational, mature thinking)
Amygdala: Directs our emotional response (immaturity)

16. What is Amygdala Thinking?
PIR Training, January 31, Katie Compton, CFLE Parent Educator,
What is Amygdala Thinking?
Fight, Flight, Freeze Survival Mode
All or Nothing: Concrete
Based on fear or anger reactions
Ignited by real or perceived threats
Begins adrenaline cycle

17. PIR Training, January 31, 2012 Katie Compton, CFLE Parent Educator, kcompton@austinrecovery.org
HYPOFRONTALITY: FEAR

18. Prefrontal Cortex Thinking: Executive Function Skills
Abstract; conceptual understanding
Impulse Control
Problem-Solving
Decision-Making
Judgment
Emotion Regulation
Frustration Tolerance
Ability to Feel Empathy

20. What DOES This Mean? Adolescents on average are more: Impulsive
Aggressive
Emotionally volatile
Likely to take risks
Vulnerable to peer pressure
Prone to focus on & overestimate short-term payoffs and underplay longer-term consequences of what they do
Likely to overlook alternative courses of action

21. Adolescents ARE Smart…but
Teenagers ARE capable of rational decisions and knowing right from wrong
BUT, teenagers ARE more likely to act impulsively and with gut instinct when confronted with stressful or emotional decisions, without fully appreciating the immediate consequences of their actions

23. What does all this mean to you?
Are your parents justified in being your prefrontal cortex until yours is fully developed?
When is your PFC on?
When does your amygdala take over?
Do you underestimate the negative consequences of high-risk behavior?

24. Amazing Statistics
Students who wait to use drugs or alcohol until age 21, are likely NEVER to have problems with addiction during their lifetime.
Students who have a genetic predisposition to addiction and wait to use until age 21, are 40% less likely to have problems with addiction.
WHY?
WHY?
SAMSHA, 2012

25. Crystal Collier, PhD, LPC-S
Vaping Craze
Crystal Collier, PhD, LPC-S
Director of the Behavioral Health Institute & The Choices Prevention Program

26. Adults and E-Cigarettes
A survey by Reuters found that 10% of U.S. adults vape, a significant rise from the estimated 2.6% of Americans using E-cigarettes in 2013.

27. Youth and E-Cigarettes
According to the CDC, e-cigarette usage became more common than cigarette use among middle and high school students in 2014.
Use by high school students increased from 4.5 percent (660,000) to 13.4 percent (2 million) from 2013 to TRIPLE the amount.
The survey asked if they had used it once in the last thirty days.
Research shows that the transition from elementary to middle school is a very vulnerable time for use.

28. Why use E-cigarettes? No offensive odors
Cheaper than smoking cigarettes (save 50-75%)
Can smoke in more places
Seen as cool
Seen as a safe alternative to traditional tobacco products
Reduce cigarette cravings and nicotine withdrawal symptoms
For adolescents, the primary reason is curiosity
The curiosity thing is based on a survey that was JUST released.

29. Types Mini - “cig-a-like” Box Mod Vape Pens Tube Mod
APV = Advanced Personal Vaporizers
Mods include box mods, which are about the size of a box of cigarettes, or a tube mod, which looks like a cigar.
Tube Mod

30. Vaporizers
“Heats never burns” “Compact and magical” “Refined design” “Variable heat settings” “Easy to use”

31. Atomizer vaporizes the e-liquid to be inhaled through the cartridge or “clearomizer.” Also, some e-cigs do not have a manual button. Rather, they contain a microprocessor that detects when the user inhales, which turns on the atomizer.
Surveys show that the average e-cig users takes puffs per day.

32. E-liquid is primarily composed of a combination of…
Propylene glycol
Vegetable glycerin
Nicotine (from 42 to 0 mg/mL)
Artificial flavorings
Propylene glycol – primary component in fog machines and is also used as antifreeze. Designated as safe in mild doses, though there is not evidence that it is safe when inhaled. FDA recognizes it as “generally recognized as safe for food.” It is a synthetic liquid. Used to absorb extra water.
Vegetable glycerin creates larger clouds and denser vapor production because it has reduced throat hit compared to propylene glycol.
Vegetable glycerin – a fat that was previously used as antifreeze before propylene glycol came along which works better – also used as an artificial sweetener
50-60% of the nicotine in a cartridge is vaporized.

34. Negative Health Effects
Respiratory irritation
Popcorn lung disease
Nicotine poisoning – skin contact/toxic
Increased chance of mood disorders, especially depression and anxiety
Arrested development of executive functioning skills, especially impulse control
Linked to cognitive deficits in emotional learning and memory
Enhances adult acquisition of “fear conditioning” which leads to anxiety
Inability to “gauge” intake amount
Also the danger of exposure through the skin while changing cartridges to high levels of nicotine leading to nicotine toxicity.

36. Marijuana Extracts
Dabbing: Smoking THC-rich resins extracted from the marijuana plant made with butane.
Wax, Ear Wax, Oil, Honey Bowl, Butter, Dabs, Shatter
“There's no ceiling to the high”
A growing number of people are smoking marijuana out of e-cigarettes, NBC New Yorkreports. Marijuana in liquid and wax forms used in e-cigarettes and vapor pens does not create an odor. Because the devices don’t produce a flame, a person smoking marijuana in an e-cigarette can take a puff and then quickly put it in a pocket. –Join Together, Partnership For A Drug Free America
NIDA, 2014

37. Cannabidiol
Cannabidiol (CBD) is a non-psychoactive component of Cannabis.
It does not contain THC
Has anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, and antioxidant properties.
It is legal in all 50 states
CBD oils are vaped
This is not FDA studied or approved

39. Impact of nicotine on the developing brain Gateway effect
Why should we (and adolescents!) be concerned about adolescent e-cigarette use?
On October 1, 2015, it became illegal to sell or give e-cigarettes to someone under 18; possession is also illegal
Unregulated
Impact of nicotine on the developing brain
Gateway effect
Negative health effects
Already spoken to negative health effects

40. How do drugs, like nicotine, effect the brain?

41. Why We Are So Attached to Nicotine
Release Glucose Stores
Release Insulin
Increase Basal Metabolic Rate
Increase in Acetylcholine
Release of Dopamine & Glutamate
Release of Endorphins
Rapid Release Adrenaline
Smoke

42. Adolescents & Tobacco
Of the 3200 adolescents who try nicotine products, 2100 become daily users—WHY?
Adolescents become addicted faster than adults
The positive effects are amplified in the teenage brain
Feel decreased withdrawal
Are more motivated by rewards
Take more risks
Are more easily influenced by peers

43. (Kandel et al., 1992; Lai et al., 2000)
“Even brief exposure to nicotine during adolescence has been proven to enhance the reinforcing value of other abused drugs.”
(Kandel et al., 1992; Lai et al., 2000)
This feels good…I bet something stronger will feel even better. The brain is now associated with using a drug and feeling good.

44. That is why it is called a
Nicotine
Teen smokers are 9 times more likely to abuse or become dependent on alcohol and 13 times more likely on illegal drugs
That is why it is called a
GATEWAY DRUG

45. Hookah Nearly 1 in 5 high school seniors have used hookah
37% of college freshmen believe water pipes are less harmful than cigarettes
Hookah contains higher milliliters of smoke than smoking from cigarettes
WHO estimates one hour-long hookah session can equal over 100 cigarettes

46. How do I address this with my teens?
Educate on nicotine addiction
Educate on negative health impact including the current inconclusive evidence for health effects
Focus on being “duped” by Big Tobacco marketing
Emphasize cost
As a parent, state expectation of no smoking and state consequences if they choose to do so anyway
As a school, consider having specific policies banning use
Practice refusal skills
Emphasize that the FDA has determined that marketing of e-cigarettes has been directed at young adults and children.

49. What if the teen is already smoking?
Set a date to quit, use harm reduction if needed
Find alternative activities to distract
Learn to manage cravings
Encourage and validate. I repeat, encourage and validate.
Set a good example
Seek out additional help such as at…
The Council on Recovery!

50. Biological Basis of Addiction Why Should I Care?

51. Executive Function Skills Check-In
Abstract; conceptual understanding
Impulse Control
Problem-Solving
Decision-Making
Judgment
Emotion Regulation
Frustration Tolerance
Ability to Feel Empathy

52. Adolescent Brain Development Re-Cap
How many brain cells do we have at age 11?
How many brain cells do we have at age 25?
What substance is thickening during this time?
What does that substance do for us?
What principle governs what cells stay and what cells get pruned away?
What part of the brain is thickening? What does that part of the brain do for us?

53. Dopamine Release and the Hedonic (pleasure) Threshold

54. IN BETWEEN Age 11-25 = ARREST
HYPOFRONTALITY = PLEASURE
IN BETWEEN Age = ARREST

55. If you arrest here but stop using here
Age 12

56. In addition, powerful emotional and behavioral patterns are created when our brains get surges in dopamine that lead to intense relationships or addictions to other substances and behaviors.

57. Dopamine-Releasing Chemicals
Alcohol & Sedative/Hypnotics
Opiates/Opioids
Cocaine
Amphetamines
Entactogens (MDMA)
Entheogens/Hallucinogens
Dissociants (PCP, Ketamine)
Cannabinoids
Inhalants
Nicotine
Caffeine
Anabolic-Androgenic Steroids

58. Dopamine-Releasing Behaviors
Food (Bulimia & Binge Eating)
Sex
Relationships
Other People
(“Codependency,” Control)
Gambling
Cults
Performance (“Work-aholism”)
Collection/Accumulation (“Shop-aholism”)
Rage/Violence
Media/Entertainment

59. to form memories and create motivation.
When Dopamine surges so does Glutamate
to form memories and create motivation.

61. Photo courtesy of Anna Rose Childress, Ph.D., NIDA website, 2007

62. This is your brain…this is your brain on drugs
Normal Brain
Alcoholic
17 Years
Abstinent
1 Year
Heroin Use
This is your brain…this is your brain on drugs
Good News…
Healing Happens

63. Contact Me Whitney Weathersby Regional Community Liaison
Prevention Resource Center Region 6
(281)