Cannabis available in Italy has an increasingly high active ingredient and the concentration of THC has risen from 1-2% 40 years ago to 25% last year, Cabinet Secretary Alfredo Mantovano told the parliamentary commission on childhood Tuesday illustrating government action against use of the drug. "Already just 1% can cause serious effects on a subject in developmental age," he stressed. "Extreme caution must therefore be used in defining a substance that has 25% of active ingredient as light: it is like saying that half a litre of beer is equal to half a litre of grappa". In 2023, Mantovano told the panel, the consumption of narcotic substances exceeded pre-pandemic levels and 516 thousand students (34% of those between 15 and 17 years old) reported having consumed a substance at least once, while 4.5% use it frequently. Source: Ansa News Agency