It is commonly thought that legalizing medical marijuana would lead to more recreational use, especially among teenagers. However, studies have found that legalization of medical marijuana does not increase use of recreational marijuana in teenagers, and in fact reduces use.
I am a physician, board certified in pain management and addiction. I personally do not use marijuana, but I find tremendous benefit for my patients who do use medical marijuana for the purpose of reducing pain, anxiety, and cravings. I have always been concerned that increasing the availability of marijuana in the community would lead to diversion of the medicinal marijuana into the adolescent community, until this study.
In a large-scale study of American high school students, more than 800,000 students across 45 states, legalizing medicinal marijuana has actually led to a drop in cannabis use among teenagers. The study, published in the American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, found that the number of teenage cannabis smokers was 1.1% less in states that had enacted medical marijuana laws (MML) compared to those that hadn’t.
Interestingly, subgroups of adolescents were even more pronounced. For example 3.9% fewer black and 2.7% fewer Hispanic youths used marijuana in states with MML.
This was not a temporary effect, and in fact the survey was administered over a period of 16 years. In states that adopted MML compared to those that had not, the study found that the longer the laws had been in place, the greater the reduction in teen marijuana use.
As marijuana laws are becoming more lenient, it is possible that the forbidden fruit novelty may be reducing marijuana desirability.
Rebekah Levine Coley et al. A quasi-experimental evaluation of marijuana policies and youth marijuana use. The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, 2019.
