Study: Percentage Of Adults Smoking Marijuana Has Doubled
PITTSBURGH (KDKA/CNN) – The percentage of American adults who say they smoke marijuana has nearly doubled in three years, according to a new Gallup poll.
The poll showed that one in eight adults, or 13%, say they currently smoke pot, that's up from 7% in 2013.
It also showed that 43% of adults say they have tried the drug, an increase from 38% just three years ago.
The poll results were based on telephone interviews with about 1,000 randomly chosen adults.
Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug in the United States, according to the 2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.
A 2015 report by the National Institute on Drug Abuse found that the rate of current marijuana use rose from 4.1% in 2001-02 to 9.5% in 2012-13. About one-third of the respondents reported symptoms of marijuana addiction.
The Gallup poll results showed that age and religiosity affect how likely one is to use marijuana.
One in five adults younger than 30 is a pot smoker: at least double the rates of each older age group.
The rate of marijuana use among those who seldom or never attend a religious service is 14%, compared with 7% of those who go to church monthly and 2% of weekly churchgoers.
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Recreational marijuana is legal in Colorado, Oregon, Alaska and Washington State. Five states, including California, Massachusetts, Maine, Arizona and Nevada, are voting on marijuana legalization in November.
