It appears some of the concerns voiced that Canada legalizing recreational cannabis could spike use and abuse among young people have not been borne out.
With one of the main pillars of the federal Cannabis Act being to restrict youth access to cannabis, it’s no surprise that cautions were raised.
“Trying cannabis is unlikely to cause serious problems in most people, but sometimes even occasional use can be harmful,” notes information from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). Still, CAMH adds that “youth who use cannabis at a young age, often and long-term (for months or years), are at risk of long-term health and social problems.”
Cautions voiced by some medical associations that cannabis use age should be 21 at the earliest, or the drug not be legalized at all, because of the threat to public health have been now shown “to be largely unfounded,” noted a research article posted last year.
Youth earlier advised the best way to protect health was to avoid weed
Calling for moving “forward on more nuanced grounds,” authors suggested that Canada adopt targeted intervention approaches “for those individuals most at risk from cannabis use-related harm.”
A federal government tip sheet targeting youths aged 13 to 17 noted “the best way to protect your health is to not use cannabis.” Youths in that age range are “more likely to experience harms from cannabis because your brain is still developing until around the age of 25. The earlier you start using cannabis, the more harm it can do,” the information adds.
A Canadian study published this past January, which considered youths in grades nine through 12, investigators looked at smoking and alternative modes of weed use. “Among youth who reported cannabis use at baseline, transitioning to a multimode group, and/or increasing frequency of multimode use was likely over the one-year period,” researchers wrote.
New cannabis survey shows those reporting frequent use stable since 2018
New figures from Health Canada, though, suggest things have remained fairly stable when it comes to daily cannabis use, including among young people.
“Overall, proportions of those reporting daily or almost daily cannabis use among those who use cannabis — an indicator of problematic or high-risk cannabis use behaviour — have been stable since 2018, including among youth aged 16-19,” according to a press release detailing results of the 2022 Canadian Cannabis Survey. The sixth incarnation of the poll since 2017 reflects input received from about 10,000 respondents this past April through June.
The latest figures show that “past 12-month cannabis use among youth aged 16-19 has returned to pre-legalization levels in 2021 and 2022, after increasing between 2018 and 2020,” Health Canada reports. And with respect to those classified at “high risk” of developing cannabis use-related problems has also remained stable since 2018.
“As in previous years, past 12-month cannabis use was highest among 20- to 24-year-olds (50 per cent), followed by 16- to 19-year-olds (37 per cent) and those 25 years and older (25 per cent),” the survey states. “However, there was no change in past 12-month cannabis use among the two younger age groups relative to 2021, while use among those 25 and older increase from 22 per cent in 2021 to 25 per cent in 2022,” the information adds.
Smoking down, vaping up
Although use is somewhat in line with recent years, Health Canada does point out that smoking weed is down since 2018 and vaping cannabis is up since 2021. That said, smoking remains tops when it comes to cannabis consumption, followed by eating and vaping with a vape pen or e-cigarette.
Last spring, Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health reported that cannabis vaping in the U.S. is increasing as the most popular method of weed delivery among all adolescents. “The study found that the frequency of vaping cannabis among adolescents from all demographic groups is reported at six or more times per month, and rising faster than occasional use. Those who vape and smoke nicotine are more than 40 times more likely to also vape and smoke cannabis,” notes a university statement.
“Given rising concerns about cannabis vaping in terms of safety, and potential for transition to cannabis use disorder especially at frequent levels of use, these results indicate a necessity for public health intervention and increased regulation,” said professor of epidemiology Katherine Keyes, Ph.D.
And a recent study out of the University of Michigan found “adolescents who vape cannabis are at greater risk for respiratory symptoms indicative of lung injury than teens who smoke cigarettes or marijuana or vape nicotine.”
What was COVID-19’s impact on cannabis use?
Asked if the ongoing COVID-19 situation had any bearing on cannabis use, 53 per cent of respondents who used pot in the past 12 months said they had used about the same amount, while 24 per cent reported an increase in use and 23 per cent cited a decrease.
“Change in cannabis use due to COVID-19 seemed to primarily affect younger age groups,” the survey results state. “Less than a quarter (21 per cent) of people 25 years and older reported using more cannabis due to COVID-19, compared to 40 per cent of those aged 16 to 19 years and 36 per cent of respondents aged 20 to 24.
While there were more reasons for upping weed use during the pandemic, the five most common reasons were stress, anxiety, boredom, loneliness and lack of a regular schedule.
More respondents using legal storefronts
Likely more encouraging is the Canadian Cannabis Survey finding that more respondents reported a legal pot shop as their usual source of cannabis compared to 2021. “A smaller proportion reported illegal storefronts and illegal online sources in 2022 compared to 2019,” Health Canada points out.
Legal cannabis is regulated, with rules in place to help ensure the reduction, if not elimination, of potentially harmful contaminants.
A study comparing illicit cannabis products to their legal counterparts released this spring found lower than advertised levels of THC in unregulated products and pesticide levels several hundred times above Health Canada limits.
And testing of weed seized from illicit retailers in B.C. revealed many samples contained contaminants that would not be allowed in the legal cannabis market. “My message to people who choose to consume cannabis is simple: Buy from legal sellers whose regulated product is subject to national requirements that are in place to protect you,” public safety minister Mike Farnworth said at the time.
With regards to the newly released survey results, Health Canada reports that its results “will be used to inform policy and program development, and help target public education and awareness activities.” It will also help inform the legislative review of the Cannabis Act, which is currently underway.
H/T: www.thegrowthop.com
