US Teen Substance Use: Decreased Smoking and Drinking, Increased Vaping and Marijuana Use

A recent study led by scientists from Columbia University in New York reveals that American teenagers are smoking and drinking less while also using drugs less frequently. However, the frequency of electronic cigarette use and marijuana consumption among teenagers is on the rise.

Experts say that social engagement and structured activities such as sports and music programs may be powerful predictive factors for substance use among young people.

This study analyzed data from 1991 to 2019, involving 536,291 adolescents aged 13 to 18. The results showed that 14% reported smoking, 12% reported using marijuana, 12% reported using nicotine e-cigarettes, and 8% reported using other substances in the past month.

However, despite a decrease in overall substance use during the 28-year study period, except for e-cigarette and cannabis use, researchers say that social organizations and individual involvement will significantly impact adolescent substance use regardless of the study period. For example, adolescents who engage in paid work and those with high social involvement and less parental supervision have the highest rates of alcohol abuse, smoking, cannabis use, and binge drinking.

Meanwhile, the study's authors wrote, "in high social groups with lower participation in activities (such as sports) or more unsupervised activities (such as parties), as well as in high social groups that spend a lot of time in paid work.

The results of this study do not surprise me, as they are consistent with what I have seen in clinical practice, especially with the increasing use of marijuana. Dr. Willough Jenkins, a psychiatric expert at Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego, told Healthline. "This study serves as evidence of a growing trend, which is beneficial because there are many misconceptions about substance use among adolescents.

David Laxton, LMHC, LPC, NCC, the executive director of Seattle's Newport Healthcare Center, which provides treatment for teenagers with substance use disorders, finds the trend of experimenting with drugs in adolescence to be interesting but unsurprising. "I don't think these are new trends," Laxton told Healthline. "Whether good or bad, experimenting is part of adolescence, much like the desire to push acceptable or allowable limits.

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