Teen Drug Use Remains Low, Survey Finds
Teen drug use hasn’t rebounded from its drop during the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the results from a large annual national survey released Tuesday.
Most Teens Abstaining from Drinking, Smoking, and Marijuana Use
About two-thirds of 12th graders this year said they hadn’t used alcohol, marijuana, cigarettes, or e-cigarettes in the previous 30 days. This is the largest proportion abstaining since the annual survey started measuring abstinence in 2017.
Record Low Levels of Substance Use Among 10th and 8th Graders
Among 10th graders, 80% said they hadn’t used any of those substances recently, another record. Among 8th graders, 90% didn’t use any of them, the same as was reported in the previous survey.
Nicotine Pouches See Only Significant Increase
The only significant increase occurred in nicotine pouches. About 6% of 12th graders said they’d used them in the previous year, up from about 3% in 2023.
Unclear if This Marks a New Public Health Problem
Whether this has the makings of a new public health problem is unclear. The University of Michigan’s Richard Miech, who leads the survey, said, "It’s hard to know if we’re seeing the start of something, or not."
Background on the Survey
The federally funded Monitoring the Future survey has been operating since 1975. This year’s findings are based on responses from about 24,000 students in grades 8, 10, and 12 in schools across the country. The survey is "one of the best, if not the best" source of national data for substance use by teens, said Noah Kreski, a Columbia University researcher who has studied teen drug use.
The Pandemic’s Impact on Teen Drug Use
Early in the pandemic, students across the country were told not to go to schools and to avoid parties or other gatherings. They were at home, under parents’ supervision. As a result, alcohol and drug use of all kinds dropped because experimentation tends to occur with friends, spurred by peer pressure, experts say.
Lockdowns’ Lasting Impact
As lockdowns ended, "I think everyone expected at least a partial rebound," Miech said. However, the pandemic’s influence may have had a deeper impact. Miech noted that a lot of teens who experiment with e-cigarettes or drugs start in the 9th grade, sometimes because older adolescents are doing it. But the kids who were 9th graders during the lockdowns never picked up the habit, and never had the opportunity to turn into negative influencers of their younger classmates.
Mental Health May Also Be a Factor
Mental health may also be a factor. There were increased reports of depression and anxiety in kids after the pandemic began. Depression is often associated with substance use, but some people with depression and anxiety are very wary of messing with drugs, said Dr. Duncan Clark, a University of Pittsburgh psychiatrist who researches substance use in kids.
Conclusion
The survey’s findings suggest that teen drug use remains low, with significant declines in the use of alcohol, marijuana, and vaping products. The pandemic may have played a role in these declines, but the lasting impact of lockdowns and increased awareness of mental health concerns are also potential factors.
FAQs
- What is the Monitoring the Future survey?
- The federally funded Monitoring the Future survey has been operating since 1975 and is one of the best sources of national data for substance use by teens.
- What is the purpose of the survey?
- The survey aims to monitor and understand trends in substance use among American adolescents.
- What were the main findings of the 2022 survey?
- The survey found that two-thirds of 12th graders, 80% of 10th graders, and 90% of 8th graders had not used alcohol, marijuana, cigarettes, or e-cigarettes in the previous 30 days.
