More Americans now have access to legal recreational marijuana than ever before, but todays teens are generally staying away from using pot and drugs altogether.
Despite further cannabis law reform throughout the U.S., teen marijuana use has actually dropped in certain categories, while others remain steady, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuses latest Monitoring the Future survey.
Pot use among 8th and 10th graders has decreased since 2015, while use among 12th graders has stagnated. 8th grade use is down to 5.4 percent compared to 6.5 percent in 2015, while the rate of 10th grade use is at its lowest level in over two decades.
8th and 10th grade students also reported the most difficulty in actually getting their hands on marijuana since 1992.
I dont have an explanation, Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, told U.S. News. This is somewhat surprising. We had predicted based on the changes in legalization, culture in the U.S., as well as decreasing perceptions among teenagers that marijuana was harmful that [accessibility and use] would go up. But it hasnt gone up.
While the federal agency is baffled by the low rate of teen use, advocates such as Marijuana Majority chairman Tom Angell say that legalization will help keep teen pot use down rather than encourage the habit.
Weve always argued that taking marijuana out of the unregulated criminal market and putting sales into the hands of responsible retailers would actually make it harder for young people to get, said Angell in a statement. Under legalization, businesses have every incentive to follow the rules and make sure their customers are of legal age lest they lose their lucrative licenses. Conversely, black market dealers dont care about the IDs in their customers wallets; they only care about the money in there.
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker
Full Article: Teen Marijuana Use Declining Under Legalization, Federal Data Shows
Author: Oscar Pascual
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