The usage of marijuana is becoming more common among young adults like epidemic

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The usage of marijuana is becoming more common among young adults like epidemic

Federal records show that more than two-fifths of young people nationally now use cannabis at least occasionally, a percentage that has gradually increased over the course of a decade of unremitting legalization. Young women, who have almost completely eliminated a decades-long gender difference in marijuana use, are mostly responsible for the development.

Where until this month did recreational weed become totally legal. In Colorado, where marijuana has been legal for ten years, and in Washington, D.C., where the drug trades on a murky grey market, young marijuana users are getting close to majorities. Additionally, in Oregon, where recreational sales started five years ago, they are becoming the majority.

Allison, 24, of Silver Spring, Maryland, one of the five states having recreational cannabis propositions on the fall ballot, claimed that it “actually helps with sleep.” Because the votes have not yet been cast, she omitted her last name.

Marijuana consumption could be at an all-time high among adults as a whole. It’s difficult to say because federal cannabis research previous to the legalization movement concentrated mainly on children.

The percentage of all adults who stated they had ever used weed in 2021, the highest figure ever recorded in fifty years of Gallup polling.

When President Biden declared last month that he would pardon all Americans found guilty of simple weed possession under federal law, cannabis supporters celebrated.

After the midterm elections, up to five additional states might legalise marijuana for recreational use. Arkansas, North and South Dakota, and other states where only 10 to 15 percent of individuals already use marijuana recreationally, could see a significant change in cannabis culture as a result.

According to Christian Hopfer, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Colorado, marijuana is “roughly as addictive as alcohol.” “I’ve seen a lot of patients who have really struggled to stop,”

According to Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, “we have seen more and more people ingest heavy dosages of marijuana” since its legalisation. The majority of cannabis users will be alright, but a small percentage of users may experience psychotic episodes when exposed to ultra-potent recreational strains.

According to Reid, early campaigns to outlaw cannabis portrayed users as “violent and bloodthirsty.” Cannabis “makes you sluggish and a dropout,” according to anti-drug propaganda from the Cold War, harming our fight against communism. Public service ads during the Reagan administration’s heyday of drug abuse resistance education propagated the idea that marijuana fries the brain like an egg.

Nearly every age group has seen an increase in cannabis use, while the percentages are gradually declining. According to federal data, the percentage of people who use cannabis drops from about 40% at age 30 to about 15% at age 55.

The peak of marijuana use among young adults occurred in 1979, when almost 36% of Americans between the ages of 18 and 25 reported having smoked marijuana in the previous month. The 1980s saw a sharp decrease in marijuana use, followed by a flattening out in the 1990s and a fitful rise in the 2000s and 2010s. In the 18 to 25 age range, monthly cannabis use had returned to over 30% by 2021.

Gallup research reveals significant differences between current cannabis users. Adults with doctoral degrees are one-third more likely to use marijuana than those with only a four-year college degree. Republicans are twice as likely to consume marijuana as Democrats. Cannabis consumption among liberals is about four times higher than among conservatives.

The least amount of cannabis being consumed nationwide, according to Texas, one of the few remaining states without a legalised market for marijuana. According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, just 13% of Texas adults and 26% of young adults reported using marijuana in the previous year in 2019 and 2020.

According to Gallup polls, men are almost twice as likely as women to consume cannabis. However, the gender pay gap is closing. Young adults have almost completely closed it.

The steady increase in cannabis use among young adults across the country is being driven by women. According to official data, the gender disparity in marijuana use reached its height in 2010, when 34 percent of young men and only 23 percent of young women reported using the drug.

In the 18 to 25 age range, monthly cannabis use had increased to 23% by 2020.

Cannabis businesses that sell the substance present it to female customers as a plant, not a drug, with a holistic appeal and few calorie implications.

According to Stephanie Zellers, a postdoctoral researcher in psychology at the University of Helsinki who has researched cannabis in the United States, “Cannabis cookery – it has become its own thing.” “I’ve seen cooking competitions where the contestants select a cannabis strain with a flavour profile that complements the dish.”

 

This year, a study by Zellers and her colleagues showed that states that legalized recreational marijuana use have an adult usage rate that is almost 20% higher. By examining twin pairs, researchers were able to account for additional factors.

A different study discovered that when states legalize cannabis for recreational use, adult cannabis usage increases by about 25%.

According to associate professor Alex Hollingsworth of Indiana University’s School of Public and Environmental Affairs, “We see the highest spike once the dispensaries start.”

Hollingsworth remarked, “I look at my parents.” They won’t raise marijuana plants, I assure you. However, they might do that if it were in a place like a store where it was lawful.