Underage Marijuana Use Awareness Campaign
Keeping Glen Cove SAFE: Underage Marijuana Use Awareness Campaign
The SAFE Glen Cove Coalition is concerned about youth marijuana use and its consequences.
Monitoring the Future (MTF) is one of the nation’s most relied upon scientific sources of valid information on trends in use of licit and illicit psychoactive drugs by U.S. adolescents, college students, young adults, and adults up to age 60. MTF is conducted each year by researchers at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), part of the National Institutes of Health.
The MTF survey is given annually to students in eighth, 10th, and 12th grades who self-report their substance use behaviors over various time periods, such as past 30 days, past 12 months, and lifetime. The survey also documents students’ perception of harm, disapproval of use, and perceived availability of drugs and has been doing so since 1975.
Cannabis
Cannabis use in the past 12 months experienced its largest recorded decline in each of the three grades, with tracking since 1975 for 12th grade and tracking since 1991 for 8th and 10th grades.
From 2024 to 2025, prevalence of cannabis use did not significantly change in any of the three grades for lifetime, past 12-month, past 30-day, or daily use.
The substantial declines from 2020 to 2021 during the onset of the pandemic marked the first substantial change in cannabis prevalence in more than a decade; in the ten years previous to 2021, cannabis levels had hovered without any systematic trending. These lower levels have persisted in the following years and have not returned to pre-pandemic levels.
Levels of cannabis use today are considerably lower than the historic highs observed in the late 1970s, when more than half of 12th graders had used cannabis in the past 12 months. This high point marked the pinnacle of a rise in cannabis use from negligible levels before the 1960s.
Daily cannabis use, defined as use on 20 or more occasions in the past 30 days, edged upward (although not significantly) in 12th and 10th grades but held steady in 8th grade in 2025. In 12th and 10th grades, the 2025 levels remained at about 2021 levels, when they had dropped during thepandemic-era social distancing policies. In 8th grade, prevalence has hovered between 0.2% and 2% since first tracked in 1991.
The prevalence of using cannabis daily for a month or more during one’s lifetime is reported for 12th graders only. That prevalence was at 21% when first measured in 1982, declined sharply to just 8% by 1992, and rose back to 19% by 1997. This was then followed by a long gradual decline to 12% by 2018, before leveling. It stood at 10% in 2025, a statistically significant decline from the 2024 prevalence of 13.4%.
Cannabis products made from hemp
Psychoactive substances similar to THC-9 found in cannabis can be derived from hemp. The U.S. Farm Bill of 2018 made marketing of these hemp-derived products legal at the federal level with no age restrictions, although many states have implemented their own regulations governing their sale.
In 2025, for the first time MTF asked about use of any hemp-derived psychoactive product with the question: “Have you used any cannabis products made from hemp like Delta-8, Delta-10, or HHC or a mix of these drugs to get high?” This differs from the 2024 question which asked solely about the product Delta-8.
Across all grades, past 12-month prevalence for the question on all hemp products was lower than the previous year’s estimate that asked only about Delta-8, with the decreases in 10th and 12th grade being statistically significant. Among 12th graders, prevalence declined from 12% in 2024 (Delta-8 only) to 9% in 2025 (all hemp products). Corresponding estimates were 8% vs. 6% in 10th grade and 3% vs. 2% in 8th grade. These results suggest a decline in adolescent use of psychoactive hemp products from 2024 to 2025.
Medical Cannabis
Since 2017, the survey has included the question “Have you ever used ‘medical marijuana;’ that is, marijuana you used because a doctor told you to use it?” Prevalence has hovered between 1% and 4% in all years in all grades and has not systematically trended.
Synthetic Cannabis
The percentage of students who used synthetic cannabis in the past 12 months was 3.2% or less in 2022, the last year the MTF questionnaire included questions on this substance. Questions on synthetic cannabis will be added back to the survey in future years if concerns arise about renewed use. A resurgence of use seems unlikely, given that students now have a range of widely available cannabis products to choose from, including flavored cannabis solutions for vaping, as well as hemp-derived psychoactive products such as Delta-8.
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA): NIDA is a component of the National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIDA supports most of the world’s research on the health aspects of drug use and addiction. The Institute carries out a large variety of programs to inform policy, improve practice, and advance addiction science. For more information about NIDA and its programs, visit https://www.nida.nih.gov/.
Resources and Data
SAFE Glen Cove Coalition: Negative Consequences of Marijuana Use Fact Sheet
The New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports (NYS OASAS) has launched a new Cannabis Toolkit for parents and mentors, designed to offer resources and information about cannabis and how to talk to young people about the risks of underage cannabis use and the impact it can have. This free toolkit is available in both English and Spanish on the OASAS website.
This fact sheet for teens provides facts about marijuana. It describes short- and long-term effects and lists signs of marijuana. The fact sheet helps to dispel common myths about marijuana.
SAMHSA Advisory Cannabidiol (CBD): Potential Harms, Side Effects, and Unknowns
SAMHSA has issued a new advisory on “Cannabidiol (CBD) – Potential Harms, Side Effects, and Unknowns”. This advisory introduces readers to cannabidiol (CBD), how it is derived, and how it differs from delta-9 THC and other cannabinoids. The advisory focuses on the risks and harms of CBD, especially those sold over the counter. This advisory also clarifies common misconceptions about CBD, given its broad availability and marketing for several medical conditions despite limited evidence of efficacy. It is critical that the general public be made aware of the potential harms associated with CBD use, and parents, in particular, should be advised to not let their children use non-FDA-approved CBD products.
U.S. Department of Justice: Growing Up Drug Free-A Parent’s Guide to Prevention
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:Marijuana and Public Health
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration:Know the Risks of Marijuana
Partnership to End Addiction:Marijuana Facts and Resources
National Institute on Drug Abuse:Marijuana Drug Facts and Research
The Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act
Smart Approaches to Marijuana: Lessons Learned from State Marijuana Legalization
The New York Office of Cannabis Management is a state agency established upon passage of the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act to implement a regulatory framework for medical and adult-use cannabis in the state of New York. For more information please visit https://cannabis.ny.gov/.
“Cannabis Conversations” is a public education campaign that includes information on who can consume, where to consume, and how to consume safely and prevention messages for youth and adults can be found at OCM Cannabis Conversations
By April 2025, poison centers reported over 2,500 cannabis edible exposures in youth (0-19), with totals reaching nearly 40,000 from 2019-2025, showing a consistent rise linked to increased legalization and product appeal, often leading to pediatric emergency visits for symptoms like CNS depression, and highlighting the need for stricter regulations to prevent accidental ingestions by children who mistake edibles for candy.
Key Statistics & Trends (National Poison Data System – NPDS):
- Early 2025 (Jan-Apr): 2,578 cannabis edible exposures in ages 0-19.
- 2019-2025: A cumulative total of 39,497 cases for ages 0-19.
- Overall Trend: A significant, sharp increase in pediatric cannabis poisonings, with one study estimating an over 400% rise from 2018-2023.
Why the Increase?
- Product Resemblance: Edibles like gummies look like regular candy, making accidental ingestion common, especially for young children.
- Increased Accessibility: More states legalizing cannabis leads to more products in homes, increasing exposure risk.
Impact on Children:
- Age: Most cases involve young children (under 6), often finding products in their own homes.
- Symptoms: Can include anxiety, paranoia, vomiting, seizures, and central nervous system (CNS) depression, sometimes requiring hospitalization.
- Study Findings: One study noted a 1,375% increase in cases for kids under six from 2017 to 2021.
Data Sources:
- America’s Poison Centers: Tracks real-time data through the NPDS (poisoncenters.org).
- Pediatrics Journal / AAP: Published studies on pediatric exposures.
- NEISS/NIH: Hospital data on pediatric poisonings.
These figures, primarily from poison control centers and hospital data, underscore the public health concern surrounding cannabis edibles, particularly for children, necessitating stricter packaging and regulations.
Edible Marijuana Dangers: How Parents Can Prevent THC Poisoning (healthychildren.org)
