More Americans smoke cannabis than they do cigarettes according to the latest poll conducted by Gallup. The numbers are also the highest that Gallup has ever recorded for cannabis use.
Of the adults how took the poll 16% said that they were currently smokers of cannabis. Nearly half of those polled said that they had tried it at some point during their life.
When this question was first asked in 1969 only 4% of those who answered said that they had tried cannabis showing the increase in use over the past 50 years.
40% of respondents did smoke cigarettes in 1969, yet this number has decreased dramatically, particularly in the past ten years whereas the use of cannabis has increased.
Only 11% of respondents said that they considered themselves smokers of cigarettes. This is the lower number Gallup has recorded since they began to collect data in 1944.
Personal views on smoking cigarettes and marijuana have also changed. When asked in 2019 about the harm of cigarettes 83% responded to say that they viewed it as very harmful.
Cannabis is however viewed less negatively, particularly in the age group between 18-34, 62% of which have described the positive effects of consuming cannabis.
As further states continue to legalise cannabis it is expected that the amount of users of the drug will continue to rise.
New Zealand has become the first nation that intends to ban the smoking of cigarettes and create the first “smoke-free” generation. The government will continue to increase the age limit for buying cigarettes so that eventually they will not be purchasable. It is likely that although they are the first, they will not be the last.
