According to a comprehensive analysis of the National Youth Survey, there are more teenagers in the United States than ever before, with 2.55 million currently using THC products and hundreds of thousands of experiments on potentially dangerous synthetic cannabinoids.
The most shocking thing for researchers is that teenagers who don’t know they actually smoke have doubled in just two years.
The study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, analyzes data from 69,899 middle and high school students surveyed between 2021 and 2023. Researchers found that studies in all cannabis categories increased significantly, and although they are unpredictable and potentially lethal effects, the growth of synthetic cannabinoids involved in particular growth.
The use of synthetic marijuana continues to climb
“We found that teen smoke vaping in THC, CBD and SC increased significantly from 2021 to 2023,” explained Jack Chung, principal investigator at the University of Queensland National Youth Drug Use Research Centre. “In 2022, smoke from smoke peaked, while SC use continued to increase.”
2023 figures reveal the range of cannabis cigarettes for teenagers:
- 7.4% of teenagers (2.55 million) are currently smoking.
- 2.9% (999,000) use CBD VAPE
- 1.8% (620,000) is evaporated synthetic cannabinoids
- From 2021 to 2023
This uncertainty represents an increasingly serious danger. When teenagers answer “don’t know” content, it indicates that they are eating unregulated products with unknown ingredients and effects.
Gender patterns change in unexpected ways
The study reveals gender differences that contradict traditional patterns of substance use. Female students showed higher rates of marijuana evaporation in all categories compared to males, which is contrary to historical trends, and boys usually resulted in substance experiments.
Among the youngest users aged 11-13, THC and synthetic cannabinoid smoke both doubled between 2021 and 2023. This early experiment involved researchers in particular, because during critical developmental periods, the adolescent brains remain vulnerable to cannabinoids.
“One of the most unexpected findings in our study is the continued growth in teenage use of SCs,” Chung noted. “This trend is particularly alarming given that these substances are often through unregulated, without safety standards or quality controls.”
Unknown substances pose hidden dangers
Unlike naturally occurring THC and CBD, synthetic cannabinoids are lab-created chemicals designed to mimic cannabis. However, they often bind more strongly to brain receptors, resulting in more intense and unpredictable responses that can include severe poisoning, psychosis and even death.
The study found that uncertainty about tobacco content increased significantly in all marijuana categories. In 2021, only 1.6% of teenagers don’t know if they have evaporated THC. By 2023, that number will reach 3.7%. For synthetic cannabinoids, the “not know” reaction jumped from 1.8% to 4.7%.
Chung warned: “These synthetic cannabinoid products can be fatal, and many teenagers unknowingly evaporate these harmful and synthetic substances.”
Co-investor Gary CK Chan highlights the knowledge gap in these trends. “We still know very little about the long-term health effects of cannabis evaporation, which makes it even more important to understand what’s in your vape.”
Social Media Fuel Teen Interest
The researchers noted that several factors driving these trends include natural adolescent tendencies that affect peer, curiosity, and desire for social acceptance. But they also highlight modern factors, such as increasing the risk of cannabis marketing on social media platforms.
“People of this age may increasingly be exposed to marijuana-related marketing on social media platforms such as Tiktok and YouTube, as well as social media influencers and celebrities,” Chung observed.
The study was one of the first to track THC, CBD and synthetic cannabinoids alone, rather than integrating them under the broad “cannabis evaporation” category. This distinction is important because these substances have very different psychological and health effects and require different public health responses.
While Thc Vaping appears to peak before a slight decline in 2022, synthetic cannabinoid use continues to trajectory upward. This pattern suggests that some teenagers may be moving towards more dangerous substances when they are acquired through informal networks and online platforms.
With uncertainty about smoke content growing and the use of synthetic cannabinoids climbing, researchers call for targeted interventions and better education on the risks facing when adolescents don’t know when they inhaled.
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