---
title: "Psych News Alert: More Youth Drive Under the Influence of Cannabis Than Alcohol"
description: Nearly a quarter of drivers between the ages of 16 and 20 years who have used cannabis in the past year have driven under the influence of ...
image: https://alert.psychnews.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/driving-iStock-468337921-Jun-24-2025-04-21-32-7193-PM.jpg
---

 7/31/23 12:00 AM

# More Youth Drive Under the Influence of Cannabis Than Alcohol

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Nearly a quarter of drivers between the ages of 16 and 20 years who have used cannabis in the past year have driven under the influence of the drug, a [study](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0306460323002113) in *Addictive Behaviors* has found. Overall, more people in this age group reported driving under the influence of cannabis than under the influence of alcohol.

Christopher P. Salas-Wright, Ph.D., M.S.W., M.A., of Boston College and colleagues examined data from 12,863 drivers aged 16 to 20 years who participated in the 2020 and 2021 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.

Overall, 6.27% of the participants reported driving under the influence of cannabis and 2.63% reported driving under the influence of alcohol in the past year; 1.83% reported both behaviors in the past year.

Among participants who reported past-year cannabis use, 24.46% reported driving under the influence of the drug in the past year as well. Among participants who reported past-year alcohol use, 6.1% reported driving under the influence of alcohol as well. Among participants who reported using both cannabis and alcohol in the past year, 8.41% reported driving under the influence of cannabis and alcohol in the past year as well.

White participants were more likely than Black and Latinx participants to report driving under the influence of cannabis. However, there were no differences among different racial groups in terms of driving under the influence of alcohol.

“These estimates translate to more than a million young people each year who are taking part in illegal behaviors that risk putting their lives and the lives of others in serious danger,” Salas-Wright and colleagues wrote. “In all, [the] findings make clear that [driving under the influence] is by no means limited to adults and underscore the importance of prevention efforts targeting teen and underaged cannabis and alcohol misuse and impaired driving.”

For related information, see the *Psychiatric News *article “[Experts Clear the Smoke on Cannabis Use Disorder](https://psychnews.psychiatryonline.org/doi/10.1176/appi.pn.2021.7.20).”

(Image: iStock/snowflock)

---

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[prevention](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/prevention), [youth](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/youth), [teens](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/teens), [alcohol](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/alcohol), [cannabis](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/cannabis), [young adults](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/young-adults), [National Survey on Drug Use and Health](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/national-survey-on-drug-use-and-health), [driving under the influence](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/driving-under-the-influence), [DUI](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/dui), [Addictive Behaviors](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/addictive-behaviors)

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