The percentage of U.S. high school students who use marijuana is now at an all-time low—even as more states continue to legalize cannabis for adults—according to the latest results of a biennial survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The new federal data, released on Monday, shows that 12.9 percent of high school students currently consume cannabis, which is defined as having used it at least once in the past 30 days. That’s down from 23.1 percent in 2011—the year before the first U.S. states approved recreational marijuana legalization laws.
In other words, the number of high school students who use marijuana has decreased by almost half—44 percent—since states started enacting adult-use legalization.
The latest numbers also show a continued decrease from the prior version of the CDC marijuana use data in 2023, when 17 percent of high school students reported currently consuming cannabis.
The ongoing decline contradicts claims from opponents of legalizing cannabis who have often argued that the policy change would lead to skyrocketing youth use rates. In fact, the opposite has occurred, according to the new federal report.
“Sensational claims that adult-use legalization laws are linked with greater marijuana use by teens are
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