According to a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the most common ways people use marijuana are smoking, eating (edibles), vaping, and dabbing. The study, published in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report on April 10, also highlights how different age groups use marijuana in different ways.
Researchers, led by Dr. Zerleen S. Quader from the CDC in Atlanta, analyzed data from 2022 collected through the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. The data came from 22 U.S. states and two territories where people answered questions about how often and in what ways they use marijuana.
They found that 15.3% of adults reported currently using marijuana. Among those users:
- 79.4% smoked it
- 41.6% ate it in edible form
- 30.3% vaped it
- 14.6% used dabbing (inhaling highly concentrated cannabis through heating)
The numbers also show clear trends among younger users. Among people aged 18 to 24, vaping and dabbing were especially popular—more common than in older age groups. These methods involve heating marijuana extracts or oils, which can deliver very high levels of THC, the main psychoactive compound in cannabis.
The authors emphasize that public health messages should highlight the risks associated with each method. For example, vaping can expose users to contaminants or harmful additives, especially in unregulated products.
Dabbing and eating cannabis can lead to very high THC exposure, which may increase the risk of side effects like anxiety, paranoia, or impaired coordination.
The report also suggests that educational efforts should be tailored to the different ways people consume marijuana, especially as usage trends evolve and legalization expands across more states.
By better understanding how people use cannabis, health professionals and policymakers can design more effective strategies to reduce harm and promote safer practices.
If you care about smoking, please read studies about smoking may increase heart disease risk by 200% and e-cigarette smoke may cause lung cancer and bladder disease.
For more health information, please see recent studies about the cause of weight gain after smoking cessation, and results showing smoking may cause white scars on the brain.
The research findings can be found in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
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