12/16/11: More Teens Using Pot

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More teens are turning to pot and see it as less of a risk. At the same time alcohol use among the same age group has dipped to historic lows. Those are some of the findings in an annual national survey of drug use.

The study, from the University of Michigan, found one of every 15 high school seniors reported smoking pot on a daily or near daily basis. That’s the highest rate since 1981. One of every nine high school seniors reported using synthetic marijuana, sometimes called Spice or K2, within the previous 12 months. The study said marijuana use among teens rose in 2011 for the fourth straight year after considerable decline in the preceding decade.

Lloyd Johnston, the study’s principal investigator, attributed the increase to the belief among more teens that marijuana use is harmless.