Cannabis use among U.S. teens has declined substantially even as adult-use legalization has expanded, challenging predictions that regulated markets would necessarily drive higher consumption among young people. Meanwhile, national data show cannabis use rising among adults 65 and older, while a recent New York City study highlights both the reasons seniors are using it and the potential risks that come with that shift.
For decades, one of the biggest fears surrounding cannabis legalization was that, if it became legal for adults, teenagers would consume more. But after more than a decade of regulated markets in the US, the latest numbers tell a story that strongly challenges this idea. Young people are using less weed than before, while cannabis use among older adults appears to be rising.
The latest data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Youth Risk Behavior Survey show that just 12.9% of US high school students used cannabis in the past 30 days—the lowest level on record. In 2011, before Colorado and Washington became the first states to legalize adult use, that figure stood at 23.1%. In other words, the rate fell by roughly 44%.
Similarly, the number of students who have ever tried cannabis dropped significantly: from 39.9% in 2011 to 25.5% in 2025. And this isn’t an isolated finding either. The 2025 National Survey on Drug Use and Health found that 8.7% of people aged 12 to 17 had used cannabis in the past year, continuing the recent decline seen among adolescents.
The timing does not establish causality, but it is difficult to ignore. During those same years, adult-use legalization expanded across the US. That does not mean legalization directly caused the drop in youth consumption. However, the numbers do not support the simplest prediction made by opponents of legalization either: that more legal markets would necessarily lead to higher consumption among minors.
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Author: Camila Berriex / High Times
