Colorado: young people smoke less cannabis since legalization

Colorado was the the first state to legalize the recreational use of cannabis for adults, and Young people today use less cannabis than the U.S. average, let alone the French average.

When Colorado legalized recreational cannabis use for adults in 2012, critics expressed concerns about a possible increase in drug use among teenagers. But a recent study conducted by the State Department of Health shows that the’Teenage use has remained unchanged since legalization. The survey, published last week, even suggests that high school students smoke less cannabis than the national average.

22% of adolescents had used cannabis in the past 30 days in 2011. That figure rose to 21.2% in 2015, with a national average of 21.7%.

One reason for this lack of increase could be that cannabis use was already widespread before the legal market was established. «Studies show that cannabis use has not hasn't increased since »Legalization, with 80% of students saying they do not use cannabis, even occasionally," say the study's authors.

At the same time, cigarette use has fallen to an all-time low among young people in Colorado—less than 10%. Alcohol is consumed more than weed, with 30% of young people admitting to having consumed alcohol in the past 30 days. Mason Tvert, spokesperson for the Marijuana Policy Project, stated that the statistics «clearly debunk the theory that legalizing cannabis for adults increases use among young people.».

Since Colorado and Oregon both legalized it in 2012, Washington State and Alaska have followed suit. Several others U.S. states are expected to legalize cannabis this year, including California, Nevada, and Massachusetts.

Colorado's initiative has been viewed as a success so far: the state is now More Money from Marijuana Taxes than on alcohol, even though the number of cannabis-related crimes has decreased exponentially.

There has also been no increase in drug use among adults, even though the police have complained of difficulties in enforcing certain laws—such as those regarding driving under the influence—and the state has had to introduce new laws to regulate the production and sale of space food. Experts caution, however, that two years is still too short a period to assess whether the effects of legalization are positive or negative.