According to the National Institute of Health, marijuana usage is at a record high amongst college-aged adults. In 2020, a Monitoring the Future panel study concluded that college students are using marijuana levels that are higher than any time in recent history. This usage was last seen at it’s highest in 1980. The report also suggests that marijuana vaping and E-cigarette usage has been climbing since the introduction of these products roughly 5 years ago.
In the report it also stated an increase in hallucinogen usage amongst college age adults as well as a decrease in alcohol use. NIDA director Nora D. Volkow, M.D. commented on the trends, “The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically changed the way that young people interact with one another and offers us an opportunity to examine whether drug taking behavior has shifted through these changes… Moving forward, it will be critical to investigate how and when different substances are used among this young population, and the impact of these shifts over time.”
The 2020 MTF survey concluded earlier this year that although levels were climbing regarding marijuana vaping and E-cigarette over the last five years, they are beginning to level off in early 2021. The 2021 Monitoring the Future survey is expected to be published in December of 2021 and then comparisons can be made with the 2020 statistics.
Read the whole report here.
