"Consistent with the results of previous researchers,2 there was no evidence that the legalization of medical marijuana encourages marijuana use among youth. Moreover, the estimates reported in the Table showed that marijuana use among youth may actually decline after legalization for recreational purposes. This latter result is consistent with findings by Dilley et al4 and with the argument that it is more difficult for teenagers to obtain marijuana as drug dealers are replaced by licensed dispensaries that require proof of age.6"
Estimated prevalence and trends in use of various substances by young people and adults in the United States and worldwide.
(Prevalence of Tobacco Use in the US, 2013, According to NSDUH)
" In 2013, an estimated 66.9 million Americans aged 12 or older were current (past month) users of a tobacco product. This represents 25.5 percent of the population in that age range (Figure 4.1). Also, 55.8 million persons (21.3 percent of the population) were current cigarette smokers; 12.4 million (4.7 percent) smoked cigars; 8.8 million (3.4 percent) used smokeless tobacco; and 2.3 million (0.9 percent) smoked tobacco in pipes.
(Prevalence of Illicit Drug Dependence or Abuse Among Full-Time Workers in the US)
" Approximately 3 million full-time workers (2.6 percent) aged 18 to 64 met the criteria for past year illicit drug dependence or abuse (Figure 2.3 and Table 2.4).
" Approximately 7.5 percent of 18- to 25-year-old workers had past year illicit drug dependence or abuse. This was higher than among all other age groups studied (26- to 34-year-olds [3.3 percent], 35- to 49-year-olds [1.9 percent], and 50- to 64-year-olds [0.7 percent]) (Figure 2.3 and Table 2.4).
(Prevalence of Heavy Alcohol Use Among Full-Time Workers in the US)
" An estimated 8.8 percent, or 10.1 million, of full-time workers reported past month heavy alcohol use (Figure 2.3 and Tables 2.2 and 2.3).
" Past month heavy alcohol use was related to age. Among younger workers (18 to 25 years old), 16.3 percent reported past month heavy alcohol use compared with 10.4 percent of 26- to 34-year-olds, 8.1 percent of 35- to 49-year-olds, and 4.7 percent of 50- to 64-year-olds (Figure 2.3 and Table 2.2).
(Prevalence of Marijuana Use Among Full-Time Workers in the US)
" An estimated 6.4 percent, or 7.3 million, of full-time workers reported use of marijuana during the past month (Tables 2.2 and 2.3).
" Adults aged 26 to 34 were only about half as likely as 18- to 25-year-olds to be past month marijuana users (8.0 vs. 15.9 percent). Past month use of marijuana was lower with increasing age (Table 2.2).
" The prevalence of past month marijuana use was higher for males than females (7.9 vs. 4.3 percent, respectively) (Table 2.2).
(Prevalence of Illicit Drug Use Among Full-Time Employees in the US, )
" The prevalence of past month illicit drug use among adult full-time workers was 8.2 percent (Figure 2.3 and Tables 2.2 and 2.3).
" Nearly one out of five (19.0 percent) workers aged 18 to 25 used illicit drugs during the past month. This was a higher percentage than among the 26-to-34 (10.3 percent), 35-to-49 (7.0 percent), and 50-to-64 (2.6 percent) age groups (Figure 2.3 and Table 2.2).
(Association of Alcohol Use with Tobacco and Other Substance Use in the US, 2013)
(Prevalence of Current Alcohol Use, Binge Drinking, and Heavy Drinking in the US, 2013)
" Slightly more than half (52.2 percent) of Americans aged 12 or older reported being current drinkers of alcohol in the 2013 survey, which was similar to the rate in 2012 (52.1 percent). This translates to an estimated 136.9 million current drinkers in 2013.
(Global Estimated Prevalence of IDU-Related HIV, 2011) "Of the estimated 14.0 million (range: 11.2 million to 22.0 million) people who inject drugs worldwide, UNODC estimates that 1.6 million (range: 1.2 million to 3.9 million) are living with HIV. That represents a global prevalence of HIV of 11.5 per cent among people who inject drugs.15
(Global Estimated Prevalence of Injection Drug Use, by Region) "At a regional level, a high prevalence of injecting drug use is found in Eastern and South-Eastern Europe (1.3 per cent of the population aged 15-64), where the percentage of people who inject drugs is four times greater than the global average and which alone accounts for 21 per cent of the total number of people who inject drugs globally.