According to a new Gallup poll, for the first time, more Americans say they consume marijuana than cigarettes. According to the research conducted from July 5 to July 26, 16% of Americans smoke marijuana, whereas only 11% smoke cigarettes. This comes after decades of continuously increasing marijuana use and steadily declining tobacco consumption. Opinions on both have shifted, with recreational marijuana use being legal in many places and government attempts to reduce tobacco use ongoing.
However, the younger generation is most firmly favoring cannabis over cigarettes. This trend could be due to various factors, including public education efforts about the perils of tobacco and a lowered public view of marijuana’s damage. Aside from the degree of fundamental change in use patterns, it’s also plausible that people are more eager to openly report smoking cannabis due to the state-level legalization movement and congressional efforts to repeal prohibition.
People aged 18 to 29 are the most likely to smoke or vape, accounting for 40% of the population. However, nearly four times as many young people (11%) consume marijuana solely as cigarettes (three percent). On the other hand, people aged 30-49 were slightly more likely (11%) to report they had only smoked cigarettes in the previous week than those who had only used cannabis (eight percent).
Changing Of The Tides
In August, Gallup released a data analysis that revealed, for the first time, that more Americans publicly acknowledged smoking marijuana or eating cannabis-infused edibles than those who claimed they smoked cigarettes in the previous week. While the study did not contain an age-based demographic split, Gallup released statistics in 2019 showing that young people were more likely to smoke marijuana than cigarettes. Compared to the previous poll, the disparity in the usage of these substances among young people has grown. Public health officials feel motivated by the rapid decline in cigarette smoking over the last two decades. A trend primarily driven by falling smoking rates among young adults, who are smoking marijuana more, possibly because it’s now legal to use in a growing number of states and vaping. Vaping and marijuana use are more widespread among young individuals than traditional cigarette smoking.”
Young folks today smoke or vape less than they did two decades ago before e-cigarettes became readily available. Furthermore, while many health experts agree that vaping is safer than smoking regular cigarettes, they do not believe that e-cigarettes are safe in general. The long-term health repercussions of vaping are less thoroughly understood.
It should be noted that the terminology used in Gallup’s questions on cigarettes, e-cigarettes, and marijuana differs in that the cigarette question asks about “past-week” usage. In contrast, the cannabis question is broader and does not include a timeline. Furthermore, respondents were asked about “smoking” marijuana, which could exclude a sizable section of the cannabis-consuming population who uses edibles, vapes, or other non-combustible products.
This dataset, which included 3,545 adult interviews for the 2019-2022 findings, with a margin of error of 4-5 percentage points, was released with Gallup’s more extensive yearly poll, which contains questions regarding drug usage trends.
According to the poll, seven out of ten Americans believe marijuana should be legalized, including majorities from all political parties and age categories. The survey’s findings and demographic trends are generally consistent with recent polls, including that only one in ten Americans believe marijuana should stay entirely banned.
Another recent poll, conducted by Associated Press and Fox News and the Associated Press and held in the run-up to the election, indicated 63 percent overall support for legalization. Surprisingly, the survey found that most support for ending the prohibition on marijuana came from the two states that denied legalization proposals last week, implying that the measures failed partly due to disagreements over specific provisions rather than the overall concept of legalization. According to a recent poll, most Americans support President Joe Biden’s decision to pardon people convicted of federal marijuana possession offenses. The majority also want their governors to follow suit with state-level cannabis relief.
Meanwhile, the same young adults who are more likely to smoke marijuana than cigarettes are also more likely to believe the herb should be legalized, indicating that the trend will continue. Separately, Gallup released data in August showing that more than twice as many Americans believe cannabis benefits its customers and society as they do alcohol.
This is essentially consistent with the findings of a different study issued in March, which revealed that more Americans believe it would be beneficial if individuals switched to cannabis and drank less alcohol, as opposed to those who think the drug substitution would be harmful. Interestingly, a 2020 Gallup poll found that 86 percent of Americans believe alcohol usage is morally acceptable, compared to 70 percent who believe marijuana use is morally good.
When taking a look back at our past, cigarettes and alcohol have caused a bevy of problems. These problems have only continued to grow as the years have gone on. However, as more and more states legalize marijuana, the consumption of cigarettes and alcohol has been replaced with cannabis.
There are several reasons for this switch within the younger generation, but the main one is the health benefits of cannabis. As more studies into the benefits of marijuana surface, it has become increasingly evident that cannabis is a significantly better alternative than the havoc alcohol and cigarettes wreak on our bodies.
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