In the 1980s, Nancy Reagan, then first lady during President Ronald Reagan's administration, helped popularize the phrase "just say no" when it came to recreational drugs.
Now, in the 2020s, the youth appear to be following Mrs. Reagan's advice. According to research published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, minors are not turning to cannabis even though it has become legal (for adults 21 and older) in Washington and many other states.
Based on national studies of youth risk behaviors, recreational marijuana law "adoption was not associated with current marijuana use," the study's researchers found.
Furthermore, the study, published in March 2024, found that "there was no evidence of an increase in marijuana use" among minors in places that legalized recreational marijuana.
Plainly said, legalization of recreational cannabis has not led to an increase in cannabis use among minors, even in places where that use is allowed for adults, such as Washington.
One of the many fears associated with the legalization of cannabis was that it could lead to an increase in drug use among minors. For prohibitionists, cannabis was regularly characterized, without evidence, as a so-called "gateway drug." One of their most impactful talking points was that legalization would increase cannabis use by children.
Well, it hasn't.
"There was no evidence that [recreational marijuana laws] were associated with encouraging youth marijuana use," the study found.
Moreover, it appears that underage cannabis use is actually on the decline in Washington state.
"In 2021, survey data showed a 50% decline in youth cannabis and alcohol use in the past 30 days among 10th graders. The 2023 results show these numbers have remained stable since 2021," the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board reports, based on the state's 2023 Healthy Youth Survey data.
As of the 2023 Healthy Youth Survey, 8% of 10th graders said they had used cannabis within the last 30 days. That number has dropped from 19.3% in 2012, the year voters agreed to legalize recreational cannabis in Washington.
A decade after legalization, data set after data set has come back showing that increased access for adults has not led to the feared increase of use by kids. In fact, the data show the opposite has been true.
The kids are alright. Maybe even more so than ever before. ♦
