One in five has tried cannabis, study shows

More than a fifth of Irish people have tried cannabis, according to new figures released today.

The number of people who have admitted to using cannabis during their lifetime rose from 17.4 per cent of the population in 2002-2003 to 21.9 per cent in 2006-2007, according to the second All Ireland Drugs Prevalence Survey, which was released today.

The report was carried out for the National Advisory Committee on Drugs (NACD).

The study authors' stressed that the increase in cannabis use is not unexpected as the period from onset of drug use lengthens as people get older.

According to the report, which was published by the Minister of State with responsibility for the National Drugs Strategy John Curran, there was a significant increase in last year's use among all adults from 4.5 per cent to 6.3 per cent.

There was also a rise in those who thought there were great risks associated with smoking cannabis, rising from 25 per cent in 2002-2003 to 30 per cent in 2006-2007.

Prevalence rates were highest among young adults and males were much more likely to use cannabis than females across all age ranges. The lifetime prevalence rate for men was 27 per cent compared to 17 per cent for women.

The average age of study respondents when that they first used cannabis was 18 years for both males and females.

Over a quarter of survey respondents who said that they had previously taken cannabis reported taking the drug regularly. Of these, two thirds said they had stopped using the drug, while 10 per cent claimed they had tried to stop but failed whilst nearly one-in-four regular users had never tried to stop

Among current users, nearly all respondents said they used the drug on a daily or almost daily basis with 93 per cent saying that they smoked cannabis resin joints.

Hash was the most commonly used form of cannabis; however 38 per cent of current users reported smoking herbal cannabis.

The majority of cannabis users said they sourced the drug from family or friends. The number of respondents who claimed it was easy to obtain cannabis within a 24-hour period declined from 91 per cent in 2002-2003 to 62 per cent by 2006-2007.

"The information in this bulletin contradicts the popular view of the dealer as someone completely unknown to the user with 44 per cent receiving the drug from family/friends and 28 per cent sharing the drug amongst friends. This highlights how important it is for parents to know with whom their children are associating," said NACD chairperson Dr Des Corrigan today.