Tufton launches youth substance-abuse campaign warning on alcohol specials, vaping and Molly

Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton is warning that substance use among young Jamaicans is becoming a serious health concern, with alcoholic specials, vapes, marijuana, Molly and energy drinks among the products drawing attention from his ministry.

Tufton told THE STAR that hospitals are already seeing the effects. “We are seeing too many persons turning up at hospitals and at A&E, road accidents,” he said, linking intoxication and heavy consumption to real harm. In the gravest cases, he said, people have suffered “heart palpitations and sometimes even death” after excessive use.

The minister said children and teenagers are a major focus for the Ministry of Health and Wellness, as both lawful and unlawful substances are now more noticeable and easier to get in communities, at entertainment events and through popular culture. “We must protect our children from marijuana consumption,” he stressed.

His comments come as the ministry begins a new public education drive built around music and animated characters named Brawta, Vital and the Health Minista. The campaign uses Jamaican cultural expression to push back against smoking, vaping, alcohol misuse, marijuana, Molly, energy drinks and other substances.

“The video is a musical culturally creative concept to reach Jamaicans at all levels of the society, particularly our young people who are the most vulnerable to the influence of substance abuse,” Tufton said.

According to the minister, the video is the opening stage of a wider plan, with more activities to come. “Behaviour change starts with awareness,” he said, adding that the response will also involve “training, community visits, headlines, community-based groups intervention” and “enforcement of the law”.

The campaign is being introduced as views on some substances continue to shift in Jamaica, especially ganja. Possession of two ounces or less was decriminalised in 2015, and Tufton acknowledged that policy change as well as the growth of cannabis-related enterprises. Still, he said the ministry is uneasy about marijuana products becoming more visible where children may encounter them. “We must protect our children from marijuana consumption,” he repeated.

Tufton said the ministry is addressing both “traditional and non-traditional substances” because of mounting concern over the variety of products being used or abused. He said the effort is expected to continue beyond one release. “It will be a series targeting and discouraging addiction from both legal and illegal substances Molly, vaping, alcohol and energy drink,” he said.

Alcoholic specials are one of the ministry’s specific worries. Tufton noted that the mixed drinks are widely sold at parties, bars and community events, and because they tend to be sweet, bright and easy to drink, young people may not realise how much alcohol they contain and may consume too much.

He said the concern goes beyond popularity, pointing to the dangers of overdrinking, intoxication and greater exposure among minors. “The choices we make today shape the lives we live tomorrow.”