Binge drinking and the use of drugs including marijuana and hallucinogens hit an all-time high in adults, according to a 2022 study from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
According to the study released last week, in 2022, the use of cigarettes, sedatives and non-medical use of opioid medications showed a decline over 10 years for all adults surveyed. However, despite alcohol trending down compared to past decades, it’s been gradually increasing for adults between the ages of 35 and 50.
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Marijuana use also increased among adults between the ages of 19 and 30, with 44 percent of those surveyed stating they’ve used marijuana in the past year – a nine percent increase from five years ago. Hallucinogens – including LSD, MDMA, mushrooms and peyote were used by eight percent in adults between 19 and 30, and four percent in adults between 35 and 50.
“Substance use is not limited to teens and young adults, and these data help us understand how people use drugs across the lifespan,” said NIDA director, Nora Volkow, M.D. “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.”
Another study, funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse was conducted by the University of Michigan, adding that cannabis use surged among young adults, next to historic rates of vaping. The survey records data from a cohort of about 28,500 participants across the country each year.
Associate professor and substance abuse expert Dr. Joseph Palamar spoke with CNN on the subject matter, explaining his lack of surprise to the marijuana use results. “It looks like we’re reaching a point in which parents and grandparents are almost as likely to smoke weed as the kids,” he wrote in an email to CNN.
Palamer further explained the effects of ketamine and psilocybin. ““There has been widespread media coverage of its effects on treating depression,” Palamar said of ketamine. “We recently found that through 2022, law enforcement seizures of ketamine skyrocketed, and use also increased among nightclub and dance festival attendees. We really need to keep our eye on both ketamine and psilocybin.”
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