More young people begin recreational cannabis use illegally in states that legalize it
Peer-Reviewed PublicationOnce a state legalizes recreational cannabis, residents are more likely to start using it, including those too young to do so legally, report researchers at University of California San Diego. The findings, published online in the May 26, 2022 issue of Addiction, counter claims that legalization does not increase cannabis use, particularly among youth.
The observational study tracked 6,925 youths and 14,938 adults using data from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health in the United States (PATH). Study authors found that young people, ages 12 to 20, were more likely to become cannabis users in states that legalize recreational use than in states that have not legalized the drug. An increased likelihood of use was also documented in adults.
According to a 2020 Natural Survey on Drug Use and Health, 17.9 percent of people aged 12 or older (approximately 49.6 million persons) reported using cannabis in the past 12 months.
Subjects in the study lived in four states that have legalized recreational cannabis use in recent years (California, Massachusetts, Nevada and Maine), 11 states that allow medical cannabis use and 17 states that prohibit all cannabis use.
The authors said using PATH data made the study the first to estimate age-level changes in a nationally representative longitudinal cohort. The study also has a much larger sample size than previous efforts.
“Our findings provide useful information to policymakers and public health practitioners interested in understanding the consequences of legalizing recreational cannabis,” said principal investigator Yuyan Shi, PhD, associate professor at the Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science at UC San Diego. “It’s especially concerning that increased cannabis use occurs among young people because of the detrimental health effects associated with cannabis use at a young age, including impaired respiratory function, cardiovascular disease and adverse effects on mental health.”
Co-authors include: Christian Gunadi, UC San Diego; and Bin Zhu, UC San Diego and Southern University of Science and Technology, China.
Funding for this research came, in part, from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (R01DA042290, R01DA049730).
Full study: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/add.15895
Disclosures: The authors report no conflicts.
JOURNAL
Addiction
METHOD OF RESEARCH
Observational study
SUBJECT OF RESEARCH
People
ARTICLE TITLE
Recreational cannabis legalization and transitions in cannabis use: findings from a nationally representative longitudinal cohort in the United States
ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE
26-May-2022
Residents of US states that legalize recreational cannabis are more likely to start using the drug
A new study of more than 20,000 Americans published in the scientific journal Addiction has found that once a state legalizes recreational cannabis, state residents are more likely to start using the drug. The study compared four US states with legalized recreational cannabis (California, Massachusetts, Nevada, and Maine) with states that had not.
This study is groundbreaking in four ways:
- It is the first study to estimate the association between recreational cannabis laws and individual-level changes in cannabis use among a nationally representative longitudinal cohort in the US.
- It examines cannabis use initiation in both youths and adults.
- It has a much larger sample size than similar longitudinal studies: 6,925 youths and 14,938 adults, 21,863 in total.
- The study provides evidence against the claim that legalization would not increase cannabis use among youth.
Professor Yuyan Shi of Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science at University of California San Diego, the Principal Investigator of this study, says “Our findings provide useful information to policymakers and public health practitioners interested in understanding the consequences of legalizing recreational cannabis. It’s especially concerning that increased cannabis use occurs among young people because of the detrimental health effects associated with cannabis use at a young age, including impaired respiratory function, cardiovascular disease, and adverse effects on mental health.”
-- Ends –
For editors:
This paper is free to read for one month after the embargo lifts from the Wiley Online Library: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/add.15895 or by contacting Jean O’Reilly, Editorial Manager, Addiction, jean@addictionjournal.org.
To speak with author Professor Yuyan Shi, please contact her through Yadira Galindo, Director of Communications, Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science at University of California San Diego by email (y2galindo@ucsd.edu) or telephone (619-379-3977).
Full citation for article: Gunadi C, Zhu B, and Shi Y (2022) Recreational Cannabis Legalization and Transitions in Cannabis Use: Findings from a Nationally Representative Longitudinal Cohort in the United States. Addiction: doi: 10.1111/add.15895
Funding: This research was supported by grant R01DA042290 and grant R01DA049730 from the US National Institute on Drug Abuse.
Declaration of interests: The authors report no financial relationships with commercial interests.
Addiction is a monthly international scientific journal publishing peer-reviewed research reports on alcohol, substances, tobacco, and gambling as well as editorials and other debate pieces. Owned by the Society for the Study of Addiction, it has been in continuous publication since 1884.
JOURNAL
Addiction
METHOD OF RESEARCH
Observational study
SUBJECT OF RESEARCH
People
ARTICLE TITLE
Recreational Cannabis Legalization and Transitions in Cannabis Use: Findings from a Nationally Representative Longitudinal Cohort in the United States
ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE
26-May-2022
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