More Americans Struggling to Cut Back on Cannabis, Study Finds
A growing share of Americans say they're struggling to control their cannabis use, according to new federal data showing a rise in cannabis use disorder over the past several years.
Findings published in JAMA Psychiatry show that nearly 1 in 10 men and about 6% of women in the U.S. met criteria for cannabis use disorder in 2024, both figures climbing several percentage points since 2021. A related analysis from the National Institute on Drug Abuse found that just over 9% of participants overall reported symptoms of cannabis use disorder in 2024, up from roughly 7% in 2021.
What Cannabis Use Disorder Looks Like
Cannabis use disorder is generally defined as a pattern of marijuana use that leads to significant impairment or distress, including symptoms like cravings, difficulty cutting back despite wanting to, tolerance that requires using more to get the same effect, and withdrawal symptoms when not using. Experts note that many people use cannabis recreationally without developing these patterns, but for a growing subset of users, the substance has become harder to control.
NIDA Director Dr. Nora Volkow addressed the findings directly, saying the idea that cannabis carries no addictive potential "may basically be incorrect."
A Broader Shift in How Americans Use Cannabis
The rise in cannabis use disorder comes alongside separate data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration showing that 21.4 million Americans now use cannabis daily or near-daily, a figure that now exceeds the number of people who use alcohol or nicotine at that same frequency. Researchers estimate that 19.3 million Americans experienced a past-year cannabis use disorder, making it the most prevalent drug use disorder tracked in the survey.
Experts point to a few factors behind the shift, including rising potency in modern cannabis products compared to previous decades, expanded legal access as more states have legalized marijuana, and a broader cultural shift in how harmful the public perceives cannabis to be.
Is Cannabis as Dangerous as Alcohol or Tobacco?
Researchers are careful to note that cannabis remains far less lethal than alcohol or cigarettes, and does not carry the same overdose, organ damage or cancer risks associated with those substances. But experts say "less lethal" isn't the same as "risk-free," particularly as more people move from occasional use toward a daily relationship with increasingly potent THC products that can produce genuine tolerance and withdrawal.
A separate Australian study cited in the research found that more than a third of people prescribed medical cannabis met criteria for cannabis use disorder, a pattern researchers linked primarily to those using it outside of how it was prescribed.
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