New studies show that legal marijuana had a positive effect on this group

In every state fighting to legalize marijuana, the cry goes, “What about the kids?” Now, two new research studies provide an answer to the question. And the prophets of doom will not be satisfied with the result.

The recently released Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) found that use of all monitored substances — including marijuana, alcohol, and prescription drugs — among teens has “decreased linearly” over the past decade.

The federal study shows that high school student use tended to increase from 2009 to 2013 — before legal marijuana dispensaries opened — but has generally declined since then. The first state laws legalizing recreational activities were approved by voters in 2012, and regulated retail sales began in 2014.

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Another study analyzed data from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study, which tracks tobacco and other substance use over time among 49,000 adolescents and adults in the United States. A strength of this study was its longitudinal design, which allowed a look at changes in the same people over time, unlike other national studies that compare different groups of people over time. According to the study, marijuana use can affect your ability to think and plan

Drug abuse among teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17 has declined, according to the study, published in the journal JAMA Network. The study suggests that marijuana use can impair an adolescent’s ability to think and plan.

Cannabis use among teenagers aged 13 and 15 fell by 3.4 percentage points in 2020 compared to 2018 and 2019, while tobacco use fell by about 4 points, the study found. Use of other illegal or abusive prescription drugs also decreased by 2.5 percentage points in this age group. Marijuana use among youth ages 16 and 17 decreased by 7.3 percentage points in 2020 compared to 2018 and 2019. Tobacco use fell by over 10 percentage points and drug abuse fell by almost 3 percentage points. Binge drinking decreased by 1.6 percentage points across the age group. According to the study, marijuana use increased among adults but decreased among teenagers.

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Everyone agrees that as teenagers develop, they shouldn’t be allowed to consume alcohol and marijuana, especially too much. But scaremongering is interesting given how long it took, despite all the science and common sense, to move the drinking age from 18 to 21. Louisiana, South Dakota and Wyoming had to be drawn in. The state of New Orleans, the “Big Easy,” was forced to comply with threats. Regan signed a bill passed by the United States Congress that would penalize any state that allows persons under the age of 21 to purchase alcoholic beverages with a 10 percent cut in their annual federal road levy.