Amendment 64, which legalized recreational marijuana in Colorado, took effect in January of 2014. Some question the ramifications of lawful cannabis in terms of public health and safety, as do I. As both an adolescent and Colorado citizen myself, I wonder to what extent legalization has promoted use among Colorado youth, and how, in general, our youth have been affected? To seek out the truth, I looked to the facts. To grasp a basic understanding from professionals in the field, I first analyzed a source titled “How Has Legal Recreational Cannabis Affected Adolescents in Your State? A Window of Opportunity”. The authors tell why the absence of comprehensive research in early adopting states is limiting future policy and scientific discovery. Authors Ewing, Lovejoy, and Choo, believe that adoptive states, Colorado alike, may have missed an imperative opportunity to research the preliminary effects of legalization of adolescents, due to a lack of fe