Abstract
IntroductionThis study examined whether exposure to marijuana advertisements was associated with current marijuana use and frequency of use among US adolescents in grades 8, 10, and 12.MethodsWeighted estimates of exposure to marijuana advertisements and marijuana use from the 2014 and 2015 Monitoring the Future studies were investigated. Factors associated with the prevalence and frequency of marijuana use were analyzed by using logistic regression and linear regression models, respectively.ResultsOf all respondents (n = 12,988), 13.8% reported marijuana use in the past 30 days. Exposure to marijuana advertisements was prevalent among adolescents, with 52.8% reporting exposure from internet advertisements, 32.1% from television advertisements, 24.1% from magazine or newspaper advertisements, 19.7% from radio advertisements, 19.0% from advertisements on storefronts, and 16.6% from billboards. In the multivariable analysis, current use of marijuana among adolescents was associated with exposure to marijuana advertisements on storefronts (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 1.4, P < .001), magazines or newspapers (adjusted OR = 1.6, P < .001), billboards (adjusted OR = 1.4, P = .002), internet (adjusted OR = 1.8, P < .001), television (adjusted OR = 1.4, P < .001) and radio (adjusted OR = 1.7, P < .001). Exposure to marijuana advertisements from the internet was associated with increased use of marijuana (β = 0.3, P = .04).ConclusionExposure to marijuana advertisements was associated with higher odds of current marijuana use among adolescents. Regulations that limit marijuana advertisements to adolescents and educational campaigns on harmfulness of illicit marijuana use are needed.
Highlights
This study examined whether exposure to marijuana advertisements was associated with current marijuana use and frequency of use among US adolescents in grades 8, 10, and 12
Exposure to marijuana advertisements was associated with higher odds of current marijuana use among adolescents
Among 12,988 adolescents who responded to the questions about exposure to marijuana advertisements from the combined 2014 and 2015 MTF, 13.8% reported current marijuana use (Table 1)
Summary
This study examined whether exposure to marijuana advertisements was associated with current marijuana use and frequency of use among US adolescents in grades 8, 10, and 12. Marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug by adolescents in the United States; 14.0% of adolescents in grades 8, 10, and 12 reported use of marijuana in the past 30 days in 2015 [1]. Marijuana use among adolescents has been steady since 2000, but the perceived harmfulness of using marijuana is softening and concurrent use of marijuana and other drugs is rising [1]. Adolescents are in a transition stage, in which marijuana use could cause damage to brain development and lead to concurrent use of stronger substances such as cocaine and opioids [3,4]. In the last several years, marijuana has received increased attention from the media [12,13], and advertisements for marijuana have increased [14]
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