Which brochures for parents on cannabis are available?

There are several brochures on cannabis for parents. The information library on cannabispraevention.de names the brochure “Elterninfo Cannabis” (BZgA 2023) as the first choice, which contains the most important information on cannabis use and gives tips for handling the subject. In addition, there are booklets from the Deutsche Hauptstelle für Suchtfragen (DHS) and a guide for schools. The materials differ in depth, target group and age. Use them as an aid for the conversation with your child.

What a good brochure for parents achieves

A good brochure explains what cannabis is, which effects and risks are known and which legal rules apply. It should name its sources and remain factual. It also helps to classify signs of use without spreading panic.

Poor material is material that works with fear or plays things down across the board. Both make the conversation with the child harder, because they do not match the child's everyday reality.

Which brochures does the BIÖG name?

The Bundesinstitut für Öffentliche Gesundheit (BIÖG, Federal Institute for Public Health) runs the website cannabispraevention.de. It has a dedicated section for parents with facts about cannabis and recommendations for handling the subject in the family. The materials library offers brochures for direct download or for ordering by post. For parents, these booklets are the most important:

Material	Publisher and year	Content according to the information library
Elterninfo Cannabis	BZgA 2023	most important information on cannabis use, tips for parents
Cannabis. Basisinformationen	DHS 2017	effects, risks, consequences, briefly the legal background, advice services
Cannabis. Die Sucht und ihre Stoffe	DHS 2017	leaflet on products, forms of use, effects and risks
Kiffen ist riskant	DHS 2019	booklet in easy language
Schule und Cannabis	BZgA 2018	guide for schools and teaching staff
Angebote zur Cannabisprävention	BIÖG 2025	info sheet with the BIÖG's current offers

Check the year of publication. The Cannabis Act (Cannabisgesetz) came into force on 1 April 2024, so older booklets may describe the earlier legal position. For legal questions, the statutory texts and the current BIÖG pages are the better basis.

Questions and answers from the Bundesgesundheitsministerium (Federal Ministry of Health)

The Bundesgesundheitsministerium publishes questions and answers on the Cannabis Act on its website. They are helpful if you want to know what applies legally. Authorities update their content, so it is worth looking at the publication date.

Associations and advocacy groups can also inform. In that case, pay particular attention to whether they pursue their own aims, and compare their statements with official sources.

How to recognise quality

• The origin is clearly named, with publisher and date.
• Statements are backed by sources or refer to laws.
• The tone is factual, without threats or downplaying.
• The material also describes help services.

How to use material in everyday life

Read a brochure on your own first and mark what surprises or worries you. You can discuss these passages with your child later. Do not hand over material without comment, because teens often read brochures as a lecture. Ask your child what they think of it.

If you pass material on, explain why you chose it. That turns the paper into an occasion for conversation.

Prevention: linking knowledge with conversations

Information helps you conduct conversations factually. For example, if you know that the young brain is in an important phase of development, you can talk about it calmly without dramatising. The article Does cannabis harm the young brain? summarises these connections.

Material for conversations with teenagers

Not every material for parents is suitable for reading together with the child. Teens often experience brochures as a lecture. Short information pages or graphics that show facts briefly and prompt questions are more helpful. You can also look at the material together on a screen, so that the conversation does not turn into a talk.

It is important that the child does not experience the content as a reproach. Ask for their opinion and let them choose passages they would like to talk about.

What material cannot do

No brochure can assess your child's situation. It gives general information and shows routes that families can use. Whether an offer fits only becomes clear in conversation with a specialist. Material is therefore one component alongside counselling.

If a brochure seems contradictory to you, check its origin and date and compare it with a second source. This helps you avoid misinformation that could do harm in conversation.

Paying attention to clarity and access

Some materials are hard to follow linguistically, and others are barely usable for people with limited reading ability. Look for short sentences, a clear structure and terms you can explain. The DHS offers a booklet in easy language (“Kiffen ist riskant”, 2019).

Next steps

• Read two materials from different sources and compare them.
• Note the passages you want to talk about with your child.
• Check the date and origin before you pass anything on.

How to start the conversation is shown in How do parents raise the topic of cannabis properly?. Facts for everyday life are bundled in Which facts should parents know?.