Cannabis in New Zealand - Usage

Usage

See also: Annual cannabis use by country

Cannabis is the most widely used illegal drug in New Zealand and the third most widely used recreational drug after alcohol and tobacco. The usage by those aged between 16–64 is 13.4%, the ninth highest level of consumption in the world, and 15.1% of those who smoked cannabis used it ten times or more per month. According to a UN study usage by 15–45 year olds in 2003 was about 20% and this dropped to 17.9% in 2010.

A 25 year longitudinal study of "1000 Christchurch born young people between the ages of 15 – 25" concluded that "regular or heavy cannabis use was associated with an increased risk of using other illicit drugs, abusing or becoming dependent upon other illicit drugs, and using a wider variety of other illicit drugs". The lead author of the study, Professor David Fergusson, stated:

"Our research shows the regular use of cannabis increases the risks that young people will try other illicit drugs. What’s not clear are the underlying processes that lead to this association. Understanding these processes is critical to how we view cannabis.
"If the association arises because using cannabis increases contact with illegal drug markets, this is a ground for the decriminalisation or legalisation of cannabis. If, however, the association arises because using cannabis encourages young people to experiment with other illicit drugs the results could be seen as supporting the prohibition of cannabis use."

Read more about this topic:  Cannabis In New Zealand

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