Cannabis and nicotine use among American adults has climbed to some of the highest levels ever recorded. A major national survey covering 2025 confirms the trend.

The findings come from the Monitoring the Future Longitudinal Panel Study. It is an annual survey backed by the National Institutes of Health. The study has tracked drug use among adults aged 19 to 65 since 1976. Researchers at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor lead the project. They found that marijuana and vaping trends kept rising through 2025. Cigarette smoking and drinking, meanwhile, held near historic lows.

Cannabis Use Climbs to Record Levels

Daily marijuana use rose sharply among adults in early midlife. This group, aged 35 to 50, saw rates climb from 6.6 per cent in 2024 to 8.5 per cent in 2025. Across all adults surveyed, daily, monthly and yearly cannabis use sat at or close to all time highs. Cannabis vaping followed the same pattern.

Nicotine Vaping and Pouches Keep Rising

Nicotine told a similar story. Vaping rates among young adults nearly tripled over the past month compared with 2017. Yearly nicotine vaping figures almost doubled across the same period. Nicotine pouches only joined the survey in 2023, yet reported use has already more than doubled in two years. The rise in cannabis and nicotine use shows little sign of slowing.

Smoking and Drinking Remain Low

Cigarette smoking, by contrast, remained comparatively rare. Monthly smoking rates ranged from 8.3 per cent among young adults to 10.6 per cent among those aged 55 to 65. Drinking habits among young adults also stayed low. Yearly, monthly and high intensity drinking, defined as ten or more drinks in a row, held steady rather than climbing.

Heroin and Sedative Use Tick Upward

Not every trend pointed upward. Psychedelic use among young adults actually fell. It dropped from 8.9 per cent in 2024 to 7.2 per cent in 2025, breaking a decade long pattern of growth. Other figures raised concern instead. Heroin use among adults aged 19 to 30 rose from 0.2 per cent to 0.6 per cent within a year. This marked the first notable increase in around a decade, though it remains below the all time high of 0.7 per cent recorded in 2013. Nonmedical use of sleeping medications among the same age group climbed too, from 2.0 per cent in 2024 to 3.0 per cent in 2025.

Experts Call for Continued Monitoring

Nora D. Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, called the low smoking rates and falling alcohol use encouraging. She said rising cannabis, nicotine and other drug use still deserved close attention. Ongoing monitoring, she added, remains vital for understanding how the drug landscape is shifting. That understanding, in turn, helps shape effective interventions.

Megan Patrick is the study’s principal investigator at the University of Michigan. She said tracking studies like this one allow researchers to spot subtle shifts early. This helps identify where additional resources might be needed before problems escalate further.

The panel draws on responses from more than 120,000 people. All first took part in the wider Monitoring the Future survey as school leavers. Young adults are followed up every two years. Those over 35 are surveyed every five years instead.

Marijuana and vaping trends are unlikely to reverse overnight. As cannabis and nicotine use continues to climb across the country, the coming years should reveal whether these patterns settle, or keep pushing further into record territory.

Source: dbrecoveryresources