What was the impact of non-medical cannabis legalization in the state of Washington on the use of other substances? Particularly among young adults?
The Study
Researchers focused on alcohol consumption, cigarette use, e-cigarette use, pain medication misuse, and heavy episodic drinking (HED).
To do so, they used data from six annual surveys of a state-wide sample from six years. The sample was 12,694 young adults aged 21-25.
The study found legalizing cannabis was linked to reduced last month use of each of the of the following.
- Alcohol consumption.
- Cigarette use.
- Pain medication misuse.
- HED.
On the other hand, past month use e-cigarette use increased.
There were concerns about a spillover after non-medical cannabis use was legal. But only e-cigarette use increased.
The study found this each year. It also found it within age groups (18-20 and 21-25).
Resources: Impact of Non-medical Cannabis Legalization
A. Web Pages
B. Readings
- Adler, J. Marijuana Federalism. Wash: Brookings, 2020.
- Cohen, B. and Bleicher, M. Cannabis Law. Chicago: Am Bar Ass’n, 2021.
- Decorte, T. et al. Legalizing Cannabis. NY: Routledge, 2021.
- Deleu, X. et al. Weed, Greed, and Legalization. (DVD video) Las Vegas: Syndicade, 2021.
- Gonzalez, L. and McGee, M. Legal Marijuana. Public Benefits, Risks and Policy. Boston: Credo, 2020.
- Halsey, A. et al. The State of Cannabis Law. A Fifty State Guide. NY: Kluwer, 2020.
- Hyde, N. Legalizing Marijuana. NY: Crabtree, 2020.
- Merino, N. The Legalization of Marijuana. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven, 2016 (Opposing Viewpoints).
- Mikoley, K. The Marijuana Legalization Debate. NY: Cavendish, 2022.
- Nelson, J. Marijuana in Society. Broomall, PA: 2019 (Juv).
- Seddon, T. and Floodgate, W. Regulating Cannabis. A Global Review. Cham, Switz: Palgrave, 2021.
C. Source
Fleming, C. et al. Trends in alcohol, cigarette, E-cigarette, and nonprescribed pain reliever use among young adults. Washington State after legalization of nonmedical cannabis. J Adoles Health, 2022.