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Youth Marijuana Use Has Declined Since Canada Enacted Legalization, Federally Funded Study Shows

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11 months ago

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A federal study funded by Canada shows that youth marijuana use rates have dropped since the country legalized cannabis, countering concerns raised by prohibition.

Using data from Canada’s annual COMPASS Study, researchers from the University of Waterloo and Brock University compared trends in marijuana use among teenagers in 2017-2018 (pre-legalization) and 2021-2022 (post-legalization).

The study, published in the journal Addictive Behaviors Reports, found that 15 percent of students in the pre-legalization cohort reported past-month cannabis use, compared to 12.3 percent of the post-legalization cohort. Additionally, accounts of students who said they never used marijuana “increased” in this latter demographic.

In addition to examining rates of cannabis use, the researchers also sought to identify “risk factors” that may predict whether a student will use marijuana. And these factors changed between the two groups before and after legalization, which “suggests that prevention efforts need to be adjusted over time to target important risk factors associated with cannabis use.”

Specifically, it has to analyze Among more than 65,000 students across the two periods, although many risk factors were “common across the years,” “the relative ranking of risk factors changed significantly.”

“The main predictors of current (pre-legalization) cannabis use were time spent texting/messaging, daily breakfast consumption, and time spent doing housework, all of which also remained significant predictors in 2021-22,” the study authors said. “The main predictors of current (post-legalization) cannabis use were depression, a happy home life…and students’ perception that getting good grades was important.”

“Our results highlight an increase in reports of ever using cannabis and a slight decrease in current cannabis use in our sample,” the study says. “While this is in contrast to the evidence of higher levels of cannabis use among young people during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is possible to argue that the declines observed here (years after pandemic-related restrictions) may not be due to the pandemic itself, but likely due to regulations related to legalization and/or changes in social norms.”

“Given that cannabis use remains common among young people, there is a great need to identify the characteristics of young people who are at greatest risk for cannabis misuse and, at the same time, to develop and expand prevention and early intervention programs tailored to the needs of these high-risk youth. This study demonstrates that, over a short period of 4 years, the pre-cannabis legalization period, the pre-cannabis legalization period, the post-cannabis legalization era. the profile of risk factors has changed significantly, increasingly involving mental health conditions.

The COMPASS Study is funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services.

German officials released the study after three months released a report on their country’s experience with national marijuana legalization.

That report found that opponents’ fears about youth use — as well as traffic safety and other concerns — are so far unfounded.

A separate recent study by German federal health officials also found this Marijuana use rates fell among young people after the country legalized adult use of cannabiscontradicting one of the most common prohibitionist arguments against reform.

In July, federal health data also indicated that marijuana use in the U.S. has increased in recent years. increase “driven by increases … among adults 26 and older.” For young Americans, rates of past-year use and cannabis use disorder, on the other hand, “remained stable among adolescents and young adults between 2021 and 2024.”

In the US, research suggests that youth marijuana use has declined in states that have legalized the drug for adults.

A report by the advocacy group Marihuana Policy Project (MPP), for example, found that Youth marijuana use has declined in 19 of the 21 states that legalized adult use—Adolescent cannabis use has dropped an average of 35 percent in the first states to legalize it.

The report cited data from a number of national and state youth surveys, including the annual Monitoring the Future (MTF) Survey, which is supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).

The latest version of the MTF, released late last year, found that cannabis use among eighth, 10th and 12th graders is now on the rise. lower than before states began enacting laws to legalize adult use in 2012 Young people’s perception that cannabis is easy to obtain also declined significantly in 2024 despite an expanding market for adult use.

Another survey conducted last year by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also showed that a The proportion of high school students reporting marijuana use in the past month has decreased in the past decade, when dozens of states moved to legalize cannabis.

At the state level, MPP’s assessment looked at studies such as the Washington State Healthy Youth Survey released in April 2024.

That survey found a decline in lifetime and past 30-day marijuana use in recent years. They remained stable until 2023 with significant decreases. The results also indicated that the ease of access to cannabis among underage students has generally decreased since the state enacted adult legalization in 2012, contrary to fears repeatedly expressed by opponents of the policy change.

And in June of last year, the two-year Healthy Kids Colorado Survey found just that Statewide youth marijuana use rates fell slightly in 2023—Remains significantly lower than before the state became one of the first in the U.S. to legalize adult cannabis in 2012.

The findings follow other past surveys that have investigated the relationship between marijuana and jurisdictions that have legalized youth cannabis use.

For example, a Canadian government report recently found daily or near-daily usage rates among adults and youth. remained stable in the last six years after the country passed legalization.

Another US study found that a “Significant reduction” in youth marijuana use from 2011 to 2021.— a period when more than a dozen states legalized marijuana for adults — that determined lower rates of lifetime and past-month use among high school students nationwide.

Another federal report released last summer concluded Between 2022 and 2023, cannabis consumption among minors — defined as people between 12 and 20 years old — has fallen slightly..

Additionally, a research letter published in April 2024 by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) said there is no evidence. States passing laws to legalize and regulate marijuana for adults has increased youth use. of cannabis

Another study published by JAMA earlier this month also found that neither legalization nor the opening of retail shops led to an increase in youth cannabis use.

In 2023, however, a US health official said that adolescent marijuana use has not increased “even as state legalization proliferates across the country.”

Another study by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that Rates of current and lifetime cannabis use among high school students they have continued to decline amid the legalization movement.

A separate NIDA-funded study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine in 2022 also found that at the state level The legalization of cannabis was not accompanied by an increase in youth use. The study found: “Young people who spent their adolescence under legalization were no more or less likely to have used cannabis by age 15 than adolescents who spent little or no time under legalization.”

Another 2022 study by Michigan State University researchers, Published in the journal PLOS Onefound that “retail sales of cannabis may increase exposure to cannabis for older adults” in legal states, “but not for minors who cannot purchase cannabis products at a retail outlet.”

Although trends were observed adult use of marijuana and certain psychedelics reaching “historic highs.” in 2022, according to separate data for 2023.

Photo by Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.

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Fluent to sell New York license and operations

Published

2 months ago

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July 30, 2026

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Fluent has entered into a definitive agreement to sell Etain, LLC, the Company’s New York-based operating entity. The purchase agreement was signed on July 22, 2026. The transaction provides for the sale of Etain’s Registered Entity license, certain of the Company’s New York operating assets and related New York leases for cash, subject to customary purchase price adjustments.

The Company believes the Transaction advances its strategic objectives and expects the Transaction to comply with applicable regulatory requirements in connection with the Company’s previously announced plan of arrangement for Vireo Growth Inc. (the “Deal”) while providing for an orderly transition of the New York operations to an experienced operator committed to serving patients and consumers.

Completion of the free transaction is subject to closing conditions, including, among other customary conditions, approval of the change in ownership by the New York State Cannabis Control Board and the completion of all conditions to the completion of the Agreement.

For more information:
FLUENT Corp
getfluent.com/










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Marijuana Has ‘Horrific Health Risks’ And No Medical Value, Former Trump Attorney General Claims

Published

2 months ago

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July 30, 2026

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A former US attorney general who served in President Donald Trump’s first term says marijuana poses “tremendous health risks,” has no medical value and should not be rescheduled under federal law.

“Marijuana redistricting would create a false impression that it is safe, reduce penalties for illegally selling the drug, and provide a large tax windfall to those who legally supply it,” William Barr wrote in a Wednesday op-ed for The Washington Post, Kevin Sabet, CEO of the prohibitionist organization Smart Approaches to Marijuana. “That would be a disaster.”

The opinion comes as the Trump administration moves forward with cannabis reregulation.

According to an order issued in April by US Attorney General Todd Blanche, Marijuana products regulated by a state medical cannabis license were immediately changed from Schedule I As did marijuana products approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) under Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

an administrator The hearing is looking at the broader rescheduling of marijuanawith The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has been tasked with advocating for cannabis reform highlighting the testimony about the medical benefits of marijuana and its relative safety compared to other substances such as alcohol and opioids. It included appearances by a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) scientist and a doctor from New Hampshire. Medical marijuana provides relief to pain patients and can serve as an alternative to opioids.

But Sabet and Barr, who served as Trump’s attorney general from 2019-2020, argued that “the evidence presented at the hearing did not support the rescheduling of marijuana” and instead “confirmed what decades of data have shown: raw marijuana has no scientifically established medical value and is highly susceptible to abuse.”

After the parties to the hearing have filed termination rights, the DEA administrative law judge overseeing the proceedings will make a recommendation regarding rescheduling, and the agency administrator will make a final decision.

DEA Administrator Terrance Cole only organizations and individuals opposed to marijuana reform have been invited to the hearing as a designated participant – telling supporters that they do not meet the definition of “interested person” to participate because they have not been “affected or prejudiced by any rule or proposed rule that may be issued.”

—
It’s Marijuana Time tracking hundreds of cannabis, psychedelic and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters by pledging at least $25/month, you’ll get access to our interactive maps, charts, and audio calendars so you never miss a development.

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The former attorney general’s new opinion says “the stakes couldn’t be higher”, arguing that “marijuana today is more dangerous than ever” and that it is “addictive”, throwing out a list of alleged harm to mental and physical health.

“These unhealthy effects are a predictable result of a powerful and addictive drug being normalized, commercialized and marketed as a medicine,” Barr and Sabet say. “It would be one thing if marijuana had medical value. But there is no credible evidence that marijuana is an effective treatment for any medical condition, despite the millions of dollars spent trying to prove otherwise.”

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) published a 252 analysis in 2023 that concluded that marijuana had accepted medical value and should be rescheduled.

The new opposition piece also says that “rescheduling would unlock enormous revenue for the corporate marijuana industry by bringing it into a category that has not been covered by a longstanding reduction in federal drug tax deductions,” referring to a law known as 280E, which repeals Sections I and II.

“This, in turn, would allow the industry to spend even more on advertising and marketing to young people,” Barr and Sabet. he wroteArguing that “those who would lose this dragon in society are laying the foundations for another Big Tobacco”.

The Sabet organization, SAM, is one of several parties Challenging the Marijuana Redistricting Process which have been upheld by a federal Court of Appeals. those separate parts State attorneys general have filed lawsuits against cannabis reform, Opponents of marijuana legalization and a a cannabis-based biopharmaceutical corporation.

SAM’s lawsuit was signed by attorneys at Torridon Law PLLC, where Barr is a partner.

The team announced in January that it was Hiring Barr’s firm to fight cannabis rescheduling After Trump signed an executive order directing officials to quickly complete the process.

During the first Trump administration, Barr was accused by a Justice Department official Directing improper anti-company investigations into multiple cannabis company mergers– Accounting for almost a third of the division’s cases in 2019.

Several Democratic members of Congress introduced a resolution calling for an investigation into Barr’s possible impeachment, saying “abused the power of his office” to improperly investigate marijuana businesses while engaging in other allegedly illegal conduct.

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How much red light does cannabis really need?

Published

2 months ago

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July 26, 2026

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When growers pull out two LED fixtures side by side, the first number they usually discuss is percent red. This is an easy specification to fix. They are efficient at producing red photons and incredibly efficient at photosynthesis, and cannabis eats away at the flower. So more red must be better, right?

Not so simple. Red is an input to a spectrum, and the spectrum is an input to a room. There is no single spectrum that wins everywhere. An indoor room pushes hard, a greenhouse that soaks up sunlight, a temperamental cultivar, and aggressive yields call for something different. Knowing what each light strip actually does allows you to choose a tool that fits your grow instead of one that just has a big number on the sales page.

© JumpLights

Blue: structure
Blue (approximately 400-500 nm) gives shape to the plant. It maintains dense growth, strong stems, tight internodes and allows it to develop as desired. It also encourages stomatal opening, so the plant manages water and gas exchange better. Get blue and you’ve built a plant that can carry heavy flowers with no problem.

Green: access
Green was eliminated as the wavelength is “reflected” by plants. It turns out that it does a real job. Blue and red are absorbed above; the green goes deep into the fat and reaches the leaves that are never touched by the above photons. In a compact room, it’s the difference between plants photosynthesising from the top down and those that work only from the top. Green won’t replace your red or blue, but it does carry usable light where they can’t reach.

Red: engine
Red is the horse of the flower. It absorbs as efficiently as anything in the spectrum, and is responsible for most of the biomass you’re after. Redder generally means faster flower development, more weight and better efficiency per watt.

But red has a ceiling, and it’s tied to what you run. Push PPFD upwards with a heavy red spectrum and some cultivars begin to whiten at the top: the flower should be dense with pale, washed tips. Genetics, intensity, barrel temperature and your general environment all feed into it. If you’re using aggressive light levels, a lower red spectrum will buy you room before that becomes a problem, leaving you almost no photosynthetic punch to get it.

Far Red: More than Emerson
Far-red (700-750 nm) appears in more devices every year. It contributes little to photosynthesis on its own, but it moves plant morphology and works with red through the Emerson Enhancement Effect. Used properly, it helps to deepen the light, encourage uniformity of the canopy and encourage the response of the bloom. The key word is small. A touch of far red rounds out a spectrum; he’s not there to make a show.

Matching the red percentage with the room
Cannabis addresses the entire spectrum, not a line on a spec sheet. Reds cause flowers, but blues, greens and crimsons give the plant something it needs. Where you land in red refers to how you grow.

A lower red spectrum (30-40%) captures more blue and green, gives you better morphology, reduces the risk of photobleaching, and holds up when you’re running extreme PPFD. Moderate spectrum (40-55%) is the sweet spot in commercial greenhouses: strong photosynthetic efficiency, strong flowering, balanced growth. A high-red spectrum (70%+) makes the most sense in a greenhouse, where the sun is already giving you lots of blue and green and your supplemental light can cast effective red to fill the gap.

Where does the ETS MAX series fit in?
This is the thinking behind the JumpLights ETS MAX series. Instead of forcing a spectrum into each room, it rarely comes up because a greenhouse and a high PPFD indoor flower room are not the same problem.

  • ETS MAX 4C41% red: for indoor rooms operating at very high intensity, where photobleaching is a real risk. The wider, red bottom balance allows you to push the tops without overcooking them
  • ETS MAX 4A48% red: balanced internal spectrum that maintains high output while controlling bleaching.
  • ETS MAX 5B57% Red: A high-performance indoor option. Moderate red, marked with efficiency and flower at the same time, up to 3,450 μmol/s, with efficiency that holds the spectrum.
  • ETS MAX 7A76% red: built for the greenhouse. The sun already supplies blue and green, so this leans heavily on the complementary red, up to 3,900 μmol/s in the infrastructure most greenhouses already have in place.

Bottom line
Choosing an activity is not a competition for the highest red number. The winning spectrum is the one that matches your environment, your intensity, your genetics, and what you’re trying to produce. Combine spectrum, intensity, environmental control, light distribution and genetics, and you’ve got a lighting strategy. Keep a spec isolated and all you’ve got is a bright room.

The ETS MAX line was created around this idea: choose the spectrum of the room you actually have, indoor or greenhouse, and let the device work with your grow rather than against it.

For more information:
JumpLights
www.jumplights.com

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