Ann Arbor Times

Flavored marijuana vaping has become the leading method of cannabis use among American teenagers who vape, according to new research from the University of Michigan’s Monitoring the Future surveys. The study, funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, examined trends in adolescent cannabis vaping between 2021 and 2024.

The data show a significant rise in flavored marijuana vape use among teens, especially younger adolescents. Among eighth graders who vaped marijuana, those using flavored solutions increased from 47% in 2021 to 63% in 2024. Similar increases were observed for older students: for 10th graders, use went from 41% to 53%, and for 12th graders, from 36% to 50%.

“The findings suggest that these products are gaining traction among youth; in fact, since the pandemic onset in 2020 youth appear to be turning toward these products while reducing their use of all other drugs,” said Richard Miech, principal investigator of the Monitoring the Future study at U-M’s Institute for Social Research.

The overall proportion of adolescent marijuana users who chose vaping also rose during this period. Among eighth graders who used marijuana in the past year, those who vaped it grew from 48% to 57%. For tenth graders, this figure climbed from 60% to 66%, and for twelfth graders, it increased from 58% to 67%.

“Flavored vaping solutions offer a discreet mode of cannabis use, with flavors apparently enhancing their appeal,” Miech said. “The study results suggest that a growing proportion of youth find the newly available flavors—especially fruit flavors—more attractive than the standard cannabis taste.

“Vaping does not produce the distinctive odor that comes from smoking cannabis, and vaping devices can be quickly concealed if an authority figure appears unexpectedly.”

These developments have raised public health concerns about changing substance use patterns among teenagers.

“As for health consequences for cannabis use, one of the most potentially serious is addiction,” Miech said. “Should cannabis use become more popular among youth in future years, then a greater number will end up with an addiction that can impair their social and academic life. Many people may not realize that more adolescents meet the criteria for cannabis use disorder than for alcohol use disorder, with 5% affected by cannabis compared to 3% for alcohol.”

Researchers highlight flavored marijuana vaping as an important topic for further research and policy efforts. They recommend targeted policies and educational campaigns aimed at addressing this issue among young people.

“Our survey includes questions on both cannabis’s perceived risk and its social acceptability,” Miech said. “Interestingly, perceived risk among adolescents actually increased over the study period from 2021-24, and social acceptability has gone down. That being said, our questions so far have been about cannabis use in general, and not flavored cannabis solutions, which students may view differently.”

While restricting flavors might seem like a straightforward solution to reduce teen usage rates, researchers caution it may not be effective alone. Teens could shift preferences or revert to traditional forms if flavors are limited. Additionally, adults living where recreational marijuana is legal may oppose flavor restrictions and industry lobbying could prevent such measures.

“An alternative approach to restricting supply of cannabis flavors is to restrict demand,” Miech said. “That is, to reduce teens’ interest and willingness to use cannabis, including flavored vaping solutions. A demand reduction approach has been very effective for cigarettes.”

Previous anti-smoking efforts support this idea: after widespread education campaigns began in the late nineties alongside stricter marketing rules targeting youth—even though cigarettes remained legal—use among high school seniors dropped sharply over time.

“In my view, the cannabis industry should be deeply concerned about any rise in youth cannabis use,” Miech said. “In today’s polarized political climate, there are few issues with bipartisan appeal, but portraying the cannabis industry as a threat to children could well be one of them.”