As Adults Embrace Marijuana, Teens Turn Their Noses Up

Legalizing recreational marijuana in states like Colorado and Washington caused many to worry that the new relaxed attitude regarding the drug would persuade more teens to try cannabis products out. However, the old adage that teens will always consider the things their parents do to be "uncool" appears to be holding true as studies show that teens' approval of marijuana use has diminished even as adults' acceptance of the drug has improved.

Teens Turn Away

A study published on September 16 in the American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse showed that in 2013, 79 percent kids between the ages of 12 and 15 strongly disapproved of marijuana use. That figure was a marked increase from the 74 percent who responded the same way in 2002 before the drug had become legal.

Not only did teens' attitudes change, but their behavior did as well.

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The study also showed that 4.5 percent of the young adolescents questioned had used marijuana in the past year, a 6 percent decrease from the number that admitted to using the drug in 2002. Even more surprising were figures showing that the number of older adolescents using the drug dropped from 26 percent in 2002 to 22 percent in 2013.

What Does It Mean?

Marijuana advocates point to research like this saying that changes to legislation regarding marijuana hasn't put youths at risk as many feared. Others say the data hasn't caught up yet and that more recent figures from 2014 and 2015 may show the opposite result. Whether or not studies like these can be used to support marijuana legalization remains unknown, but most agree that despite comforting statistics like those ones, more needs to be done to educate people on the dangers of using marijuana.

Overdose And Overuse

While teens may be snubbing the drug, children are often overdosing unknowingly. The emergence of edible marijuana products has increased the number of children being admitted to emergency rooms around the country because they've unknowingly consumed a large amount of marijuana.

A lack of research regarding the long-term effects of marijuana has also tricked some young adults into believing that using the drug is completely safe. While most experts agree that marijuana can be considered safer than drugs like heroin, marijuana does have its own risks, many of which are still largely unknown.