It has been found in a recent study that in states where recreational marijuana is legal, people are using cannabis 20% more than their counterparts in states where it’s not legal.
A study found that adults in Colorado used cannabis more frequently than adults in Minnesota. The researchers did this by using survey data from the Colorado Boulder Center for Antisocial Drug Dependence to collect data on 3,500 people who had been studied between 2018-2021. Colorado became the first state to legalize recreational cannabis in 2014.
Data from hundreds of sets of identical twins living in Minnesota and California was used, to help control for factors such as family setting and shared genes. This study also highlighted the Minnesota Center for Twin Family Research’s research.
The authors of the study found that children living in Colorado use cannabis more than those living in Minnesota, where marijuana is only legal for medical purposes.
Research found people who used cannabis before it was legalized were more likely to increase their use after legalization, while those who had never before used it weren’t more likely to use it.
The results build on findings from a study published Monday by the National Institutes of Health that found 43% of U.S. adults ages 19 to 30 used cannabis in the past year, a nine-point rise from the 34% of young adults who reported using cannabis five years ago. The study also found a surge in the use of hallucinogens, including LSD, peyote and psychedelic mushrooms.
In recent studies, it’s been determined that people who consume or use cannabis are more likely to be hospitalized or visit the emergency room. One study published in BMJ Open Respiratory Research found that cannabis users were 22% more likely to go over the ER for various reasons, including acute trauma, respiratory problems, and gastrointestinal issues. Unintentional cannabis poisonings have also spiked in children under 10-years-old due to Canada’s increase of legalization on recreational use of cannabis. And many experts argue that marijuana calories should not be consumed as they may lead to health complications such as weight gain and cardiovascular disease.
Despite the banned at the federal level, 19 states and Washington, D.C. have legalized it for recreational use. This legalization is only happening in 19 states, but over 141 million adults live in those states and want it to happen everywhere else. There is still a lot of unknown about the benefits of CBD or THC for medical or recreational use. A recent Gallup poll showed that support for legalizing marijuana has risen 10 points since 2013, to 68% in 2021. A majority of Americans says marijuana should be legal for medical and recreational use, with Democrats favoring this more than Republicans. Support for legalization has risen 60% from the Pew Research survey released April 2021, but there are still many people who only want cannabis available by prescription.
25 billion dollars is how much money U.S. dispensaries made from cannabis sales in 2021. With the growth of legal sales forecasted to exceed $33 billion by the end of this year, economists are optimistic about continued marijuana market growth.
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