U.S. Government Confirms that More High School Students Smoke Marijuana than Tobacco

Sunday, June 10, 2012
(graphic: seethru.co.uk
American high school students prefer marijuana to cigarettes, according to a report released June 8 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta. CDC, an operating division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services responsible for leading public health efforts to prevent and control infectious and chronic disease, etc., confirmed that marijuana smoking is now more prevalent than tobacco smoking among American high school students. A survey by the anti-drug group the Partnership at DrugFree.org, reported by AllGov last month, found slightly more pot use than CDC, but the CDC survey, which included more than 15,000 students, is considered more reliable than the Partnership’s, which surveyed only 3,000.
 
The report, which covers the year 2011, found that 44.7% of students have tried cigarette smoking at least once, a steep drop from the 70.4% that had done so in 1999, while in 2011 39.9% had smoked marijuana at least once in their life, a modest decline from the 47.2% who had in 1999. Nevertheless, only 18.1% of students had smoked cigarettes on at least 1 day during the 30 days before the survey, versus 23.1% of students who had smoked marijuana one or more times during the 30 days before the survey. Thus, barely 40% of those who had tried tobacco at least once became cigarette smokers, but 57% of those who had tried weed became at least once a month tokers.
 
Ironically, and despite the ritual hand-wringing exhibited by those whose job it is to highlight what’s wrong with kids these days, there is a silver lining to the cloud of ganja smoke hovering over American youth. As numerous studies have demonstrated, smoking marijuana, while not a healthy activity, is less harmful to health than smoking tobacco cigarettes, far less habit forming, and does not constitute a “gateway” to using other drugs.
-Matt Bewig
 
To Learn More:
Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance—United States, 2011 (by Danice K. Eaton, Laura Kann, et al., Centers for Disease Control) (pdf)
More Teens Smoke Marijuana than Tobacco (by Noel Brinkerhoff, AllGov)

Comments

Shawn Christopher 11 years ago
at least our kids are smart enough to choose cannabis over alcohol or cigarettes, what the real crime is, is that government fails to take a hold of a black market that's going to exists no matter what unless they take control and start taxing and regulating. law enforcements job , though they will never be smart enough to realize this, is to actually protect drug dealers , kingpins, murderers and crime lords, law enforcement actually protects them. they protect a market that fills their pockets with money and buys them brand new guns to kill our officers, at the same time making enemies with the public by arresting and oppressing our youth. the biggest threat to me and my children is not cannabis, it's law enforcement and the dea. wake up government. this prohibition is worse than alcohol prohibition. we put a million americans in jail for simple possession each year and it's one of the biggest crimes against humanity going on in the world today
Realist 11 years ago
great, i would much rather anyone smokes something healthy for them than some extremely addictive carcinogen. funny that most of the current teens of america are capable comprehending that marijuana is safe, non-addictive and enjoyable; while so many politicians remain undereducated.
kevin 11 years ago
it's time for the tobacco industry to switch to growing marijuana. tobacco is a nasty, vile carcinogen that only should be used as bug killer. marijuana and hemp are useful crops that do not cause cancer or allergic reactions and should be legal. of course, smoking any leafy substance can lead to lung problems, so vaporizers and edibles should be used instead.
oldstoner61 11 years ago
good news indeed! smoking cancer sticks on the decline. smoking anti-cancer sticks on the rise. ironic isn't it -- the primary reason for this welcome turn of events is prohibition, which has been a disaster of epic proportions for america, but has made marijuana easier for kids to get than alcohol or tobacco (street dealers don't id and don't close on sundays). ... as to whether or not the smoking of pot is unhealthful, the jury is still out: one university's epidemiological study found lower lung cancer rates among pot smokers than among the tobacco smokers, the tobacco & pot (combined) smokers, and the non-smokers in the study.
Brad 11 years ago
gee, i wonder why? let's see, legit businesses pedal one product while criminals pedal the other.......another product of prohibition and the fault of the "noble" drug warriors......

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