Marijuana and Hallucinogen Use Surges Among Young Adults
Marijuana and hallucinogen use reported by young adults 19-30 years old increased significantly in 2021 compared with five and 10 years ago, according to the Monitoring the Future study funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Rates of past-month nicotine vaping increased in young adults for the past four years, despite leveling off in 2020, the study said.
Past-month marijuana vaping, which had decreased in 2020, rebounded to pre-pandemic levels in 2021.
Alcohol remains the most used substance among adults in the study, though past-year, past-month and daily drinking have decreased over the past decade.
That said, the researchers found binge drinking — five or more drinks in a row in the past two weeks — rebounded in 2021 from a historic low in 2020.
In 2021, high-intensity drinking — having 10 or more drinks in a row in the past two weeks — reached its highest level since first measured in 2005.
“As the drug landscape shifts over time, this data provides a window into the substances and patterns of use favored by young adults,” said Dr. Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, in a written statement.
“We need to know more about … the health effects that result from consuming different potencies and forms of these substances,” she said.
Since 1975, the Monitoring the Future study has annually surveyed substance use behaviors and attitudes among a nationally representative sample of teens, conducting follow-up surveys to track drug use through adulthood.
The MTF study is conducted by scientists at the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research, Ann Arbor, and is funded by NIDA, part of the NIH.