A report of Health Canadal’2024 Canadian Cannabis Surveyreveals that the number of Canadians who report smoking cannabis continues to decline. “That said, smoking remains the most common method of consuming cannabis (69%), followed by eating (57%) and vaping with a vaping pen or e-cigarette (37%),” the authors say in a press release. published when the report was released.
This survey examines the sources (legal or not) through which Canadians obtain cannabis, their consumption habits, quantities purchased, prices, quantities consumed for medical purposes as well as impaired driving.
It also looks at access to information, exposure and perceived effectiveness of health warnings as well as the ability of Canadians to identify legal cannabis establishments.
Impaired driving
The report shows that 18% of people who had used cannabis in the last 12 months reported driving after use, a drop from 27% in 2018. Furthermore, the proportion of respondents consuming cannabis daily or almost daily remained stable at around 25% since 2018.
Based on responses from 11,666 Canadians collected between April and July 2024, the survey reveals that 80% of participants could answer questions about the harmful effects of cannabis. However, only 30% were aware of the longer lasting effects of edibles compared to inhaled products.
Social acceptability of cannabis use has increased since 2018 (the year of legalization), although acceptability of regular consumption of edibles and vaporization has decreased slightly compared to 2023 responses.
Consumption frequency
In total, 26% of people aged 16 and over reported using cannabis for non-medical purposes in the past 12 months, an increase from 22% in 2018. Of these users, 56% used cannabis. cannabis three days or less per month, while 16% used it daily.
“Over the seven-year period, the frequency of cannabis use remained generally unchanged, with the exception that in 2024, more people used cannabis five or six days a week and fewer people consumed daily compared to 2018,” specify the authors.
The average age of first cannabis use was 20.7 years in 2024, compared to 18.9 years in 2018. It should be noted that users rarely combine cannabis with other substances. Alcohol (38%) remains the substance most often consumed in combination with cannabis.
Combinations with other substances
“The frequency (“sometimes”, “often” or “always”) of combining alcohol or tobacco with cannabis has decreased since 2018,” we can read. “The majority of people in Canada who have used cannabis in the past 12 months have never combined cannabis with opioids (96%), sedatives (96%), stimulants (93%), or hallucinogens or dissociatives (drugs characterized by dissociation) [90 %]. »
Only 5% of cannabis users reported needing professional help with their use, while 46% said cannabis use helped reduce their reliance on other medications.
