Cannabis study: young people smoke less, young adults more

According to a report, the number of minor consumers has decreased after the participation of cannabis, while consumption has increased in young adults. According to the current drug affinity study 2025 of the Federal Institute for Public Health (BIÖG), about which the newspapers of the editorial network Germany (Tuesday editions) report, the proportion of young people between the ages of 12 and 17, which has consumed cannabis in the past twelve months, has decreased from 6.7 percent in 2023 to 6.1 this year.

The proportion of regular consumers who have increased cannabis more than ten times in the past twelve months was reduced from 1.3 to 1.1 percent during this period.

According to the legalization, the study consumed in young adults between the ages of 18 and 25. According to the study, the so-called twelve-month prevalence in this age group rose from 23.3 to 25.6 percent between 2023 and 2025. The proportion of regular consumers therefore increased from eight to 8.9 percent.

According to the information, the greatest growth was given to young men: here the twelve-month prevalence rose here from 26.9 to 31.6 percent. The number of regular male consumers grew from 10.6 to 12.4 percent.

For the representative study, a total of 7001 young people between the ages of twelve and 25 were interviewed between April and July 2025. The previous study ran in the period between April and June 2023-before the partial cannabis legalization, which came into force on April 1, 2024.

Possession and controlled cultivation to private use have been allowed since then, but with restrictions. Consumption in public space is limited – in the immediate vicinity of minors and near schools, daycare centers and sports facilities, for example.