1 of 2 | Past-year drinking among 19- to 30-year-olds increased slightly from 82% in 2017 to 84% in 2022, the National Institutes of Health said Thursday.
Binge drinking among 35- to 50-year-olds reached its highest level of 29% in 2022, up from 25% in 2017. File Photo by BIllie Jean Shaw/UPI
Aug. 17 (UPI) -- Cannabis and hallucinogen use, as well as binge drinking, among U.S. adults ages 35-50 reached a historic high in 2022, the National Institutes of Health said Thursday.
"Past-year use of marijuana and hallucinogens by adults 35 to 50 years old continued a long-term upward trajectory to reach all-time highs in 2022, according to the Monitoring the Future (MTF) panel study, an annual survey of substance-use behaviors and attitudes of adults 19 to 60," the NIH said in a press release.
The MTF survey has monitored the substance-use patterns of sample groups of Americans since 1975.
"Understanding these trends is a first step and it is crucial that research continues to illuminate how substance use and related health impacts may change over time, we want to ensure that people from the earliest to the latest stages in adulthood are equipped with up-to-date knowledge to help inform decisions related to substance use," said National Institute on Drug Abuse Director Nora Volkow.
The 2022 survey data was collected via online and paper surveys.
The data reveal that 44% of 19-30-year-olds had reported using marijuana in the past year compared to 35% in 2017 and that daily marijuana use increased from 8% in 2017 to 11% in 2022 in the same age group.
Among adults 35-50 past-year marijuana use increased from 17% in 2017 to 28% in 2022, an all-time high.
While drinking has generally decreased among the adult U.S. population, past-year drinking among 19- to 30-year-olds increased slightly from 82% in 2017 to 84% in 2022.
Binge drinking among 35- to 50-year-olds reached its highest level of 29% in 2022, up from 25% in 2017.
Past-year hallucinogen use among adults ages 19-30 stood at 8% in 2022, up from 5% in 2017. Among adults ages 35-50, past-year hallucinogen use was 4% in 2022, up from less than 1% in 2017.
"Behaviors and public perception of drug use can shift rapidly, based on drug availability and other factors. It's important to track this so that public health professionals and communities can be prepared to respond," said MTF panel principal investigator Megan Patrick.
