Ann Arbor, MI: Teens are more likely to admit having used marijuana in the past months than they are cigarettes, according to federal survey data released this week.
Investigators at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor reported that a greater percentage of 12th and 10th graders said they used cannabis in the previous month than smoked cigarettes. Past-month use of cigarettes and marijuana among 8th graders was nearly equal.
According to the survey, cigarettes use among young people has fallen dramatically since the mid-1990s, dropping to its lowest levels since 1975 – when investigators first began tracking its use. Monthly use of marijuana by young people has remained at roughly the same levels since the mid-1990s.
Commenting on the survey data, NORML Executive Director Allen St. Pierre said: “There’s a lesson to be learned here. Over the past 40 years tens of millions of Americans have voluntarily quit smoking a legal, yet highly addictive intoxicant. Many others, especially young people, have refused to initiate the habit. And they’ve all made this decision without ever once being threatened with criminal prosecution and arrest, imprisonment, probation, or drug testing.”
For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre, NORML Executive Director, at (202) 483-5500.