Cannabis use among adolescents has fallen dramatically, confirms government-funded study

By Maureen Meehan

Data from the University of Michigan’s annual Monitoring the Future (MTF) survey released Wednesday showed an unprecedented year-over-year decline in the use of marijuana and other controlled substances by young people.

The authors found, “The percentage of students who reported using marijuana (in all forms, including smoking and vaping) in the past year has decreased significantly among 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students.”

Photo by Eliott Reyna via Unsplash

Specifically, the data showed a 38% year-over-year decrease in self-reported marijuana use among eighth graders, a 38% decrease in tenth graders, and a 13% decrease in 12th graders.

“We have never seen such a dramatic drop in drug use among adolescents in just one year,” said Nora Volkow, director of the US National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) in a press release. NIDA funded the study. “These data are unprecedented and highlight an unexpected potential consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has caused seismic shifts in the daily lives of adolescents.”

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In September, Dr. Volkow publicly in a podcast with Ethan Nadelmann, former director of the Drug Policy Alliance, that the passage of nationwide laws regulating the adult cannabis market has not increased the percentage of young people using the substance. Just last week, Volkow said in an interview that there was no evidence that smoking cannabis was harmful.

The MTF results, presented just a few months after similar conclusions were published by the U.S. National Institutes of Health, also found that cannabis use between ages 12 and 17 fell dramatically year-over-year.

Why Schools Should Have Cannabis-Based Medicines For StudentsPhoto by Green Chameleon via Unsplash

“These latest findings complement the growing scientific literature showing that marijuana regulation guidelines can be implemented to allow adult access while limiting access and abuse by adolescents,” said the deputy director of NORML. Paul Armentano, in an email statement.

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Armentano pointed out that Monitoring the Future results are in line with numerous other studies that have concluded that the statewide guidelines on cannabis legalization are not linked to a significant increase in marijuana use by young people or their access to it.

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and was republished with permission.

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