Reno, NV: The initiation of state-licensed marijuana sales is not independently associated with an increase in cannabis use among young people, according to data published in the journal Addictive Behaviors.
Researchers compared trends in marijuana use among middle school students in Nevada and New Mexico. During the study period, Nevada permitted retail sales of marijuana products while New Mexico did not.
They reported “no immediate change in lifetime or past 30-day marijuana use among middle school-aged adolescents in Nevada compared to New Mexico.” Rather, marijuana use trends in both states followed similar trajectories.
Consistent with other studies, investigators concluded, “Adult-use sales were not associated with an increase in lifetime or P30D [past 30-day] marijuana use.”
Although the study’s authors did identify upticks in marijuana use among certain demographics (e.g., students of color) during the study period (2017-2019), numerous other studies assessing nationwide trends over the better part of the past decade have consistently reported that cannabis use among teens has steadily declined.
Full text of the study, “Increasing lifetime and past 30-day marijuana use among middle school students regardless of recreational marijuana sales,” appears in Addictive Behaviors. Additional information is available from NORML’s Fact Sheet, ‘Marijuana Regulation and Teen Use Rates.’