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Cannabis, vaping and other drugs

How you respond to the possibility that your teen tries drugs: zero tolerance, clear disapproval with honest information about harm, tolerance, or their choice.

How do we handle cannabis, vaping and other drugs with our teen?

In short: Parents choose between 4 main approaches: Zero tolerance with consequences; Clear disapproval plus honest harm-reduction information; Tolerated experimentation; The teen's choice. Evidence: your call. No outcome evidence picks a winner. Preference, culture, money and logistics decide. Best settled: teen.

Evidence
Your call
Best settled
Teen
Part of
Learning & the wider world

Cannabis, vaping and other drugs: what are the options?

Parents usually land on one of these 4 approaches.

  1. 1. Zero tolerance with consequences

    Any use is forbidden and punished.

  2. 2. Clear disapproval plus honest harm-reduction information

    You make clear you disapprove and give accurate information on staying safer.

  3. 3. Tolerated experimentation

    You accept that the teen may try things.

  4. 4. The teen's choice

    The teen decides.

Cannabis, vaping and other drugs: what does the evidence say?

Your call. No outcome evidence picks a winner. Preference, culture, money and logistics decide. (Values (thin evidence))

A harm-reduction curriculum raised knowledge in a pilot; effects on use are unknown

Sources

What else is worth knowing?

The teenage brain is still developing, and health bodies advise against cannabis and nicotine use at this age. Parents choose between firm prohibition and honest information about risk, or some of both. Whatever your stance, a teen needs to know they can call you if something goes wrong.

Questions to ask each other

  • What do we know about vaping and cannabis today?
  • How would we respond if we found out our teen tried something?
  • What is our plan to keep them safe if they do?

More in The teen years

First published 2026-10-03. Last updated 2026-10-05. General information, not medical advice.