Why has cannabis use become so widespread among young people?

Several circumstances have contributed to widespread cannabis use among young people:

• The low social perception of risk. In the latest ESTUDES Survey The myth that tobacco use is more dangerous than cannabis use continues to persist.
• Social permissiveness, which is perceived as a close, normalized substance integrated into leisure spaces.
• Easy access to the substance. Of all illegal drugs, cannabis has the highest perceived availability: 6 out of 10 students think it is easy or very easy to obtain.
• The myths and misconceptions surrounding cannabis . For example: that it is a natural, ecological substance with therapeutic effects or less harmful than smoking tobacco, which are compounded by the commercial interests of companies focused on marketing products.

This is also reflected in the study published by the Reina Sofia Center of FAD Youth , "Social Representation of Cannabis 2022. Evolution from the Differential Perspective of the Young Population ," which shows that more and more young people see cannabis as an accessible, close, visible, tolerated substance integrated into leisure spaces and even connoted as a natural substance compared to other substances considered chemical and more harmful (such as alcohol and tobacco).