{"id":12817,"date":"2025-04-04T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-04T10:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/?p=12817"},"modified":"2025-05-27T14:10:03","modified_gmt":"2025-05-27T12:10:03","slug":"cannabis-as-safer-than-alcohol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/cannabis-as-safer-than-alcohol\/","title":{"rendered":"Americans Now View Cannabis as Safer Than Alcohol and Tobacco: Gallup Poll Highlights Shifting Perceptions"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Key Findings from the 2024 Gallup Poll<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The latest Gallup poll reveals a seismic shift in American attitudes toward cannabis. According to the survey,&nbsp;<strong>65% of U.S. adults<\/strong>&nbsp;now believe alcohol and tobacco pose greater health risks than marijuana\u2014a stark contrast to decades past. Notably:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>72%<\/strong>&nbsp;rated tobacco as \u201cvery harmful,\u201d while&nbsp;<strong>67%<\/strong>&nbsp;said the same for alcohol.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Only&nbsp;<strong>21%<\/strong>&nbsp;classified cannabis as \u201cvery harmful.\u201d<br>This growing acceptance aligns with state-level legalization efforts, with 24 states now permitting recreational use.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1120\" height=\"1120\" src=\"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Leonardo_Phoenix_10_Create_a_vibrant_splitscreen_infographic_L_0.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12818\" style=\"width:564px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Leonardo_Phoenix_10_Create_a_vibrant_splitscreen_infographic_L_0.webp 1120w, https:\/\/treezclub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Leonardo_Phoenix_10_Create_a_vibrant_splitscreen_infographic_L_0-300x300.webp 300w, https:\/\/treezclub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Leonardo_Phoenix_10_Create_a_vibrant_splitscreen_infographic_L_0-150x150.webp 150w, https:\/\/treezclub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Leonardo_Phoenix_10_Create_a_vibrant_splitscreen_infographic_L_0-768x768.webp 768w, https:\/\/treezclub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Leonardo_Phoenix_10_Create_a_vibrant_splitscreen_infographic_L_0-400x400.webp 400w, https:\/\/treezclub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Leonardo_Phoenix_10_Create_a_vibrant_splitscreen_infographic_L_0-800x800.webp 800w, https:\/\/treezclub.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Leonardo_Phoenix_10_Create_a_vibrant_splitscreen_infographic_L_0-100x100.webp 100w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1120px) 100vw, 1120px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>A Decade of Changing Views<\/strong><br>Since 2013, when Colorado and Washington first legalized recreational cannabis, public opinion has steadily shifted. Gallup\u2019s data shows a&nbsp;<strong>40% drop<\/strong>&nbsp;in the perception of cannabis as \u201chighly harmful\u201d over the past 10 years, driven by increased medical research and destigmatization campaigns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Why Are Perceptions of Cannabis Evolving?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Medical Advancements and Education<\/strong><br>Studies highlighting cannabis\u2019s therapeutic benefits for chronic pain, epilepsy, and PTSD have reshaped its image. Organizations like NORML and the Mayo Clinic have amplified data showing marijuana\u2019s lower addiction potential compared to alcohol (9% vs 15%).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The Failure of Prohibition<\/strong><br>With&nbsp;<strong>52% of Americans<\/strong>&nbsp;now living in legalized states, the predicted societal harms (e.g., increased youth use, crime) haven\u2019t materialized. Instead, tax revenues and reduced opioid overdoses in legal states have bolstered public support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Alcohol and Tobacco\u2019s Declining Reputation<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>The Alcohol Paradox<\/strong><br>Despite its cultural ubiquity, alcohol contributes to&nbsp;<strong>95,000 U.S. deaths annually<\/strong>&nbsp;(CDC), including liver disease and accidents. Tobacco, linked to&nbsp;<strong>480,000 yearly deaths<\/strong>, faces similar scrutiny. Yet both remain legal, highlighting the inconsistency in drug policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Health Risks Compared<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Alcohol<\/strong>: High addiction risk, organ damage, impaired judgment.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Tobacco<\/strong>: Cancer, heart disease, secondhand smoke risks.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Cannabis<\/strong>: Low overdose risk, temporary impairment, no long-term lung damage when vaporized.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Policy Implications and the Road to Federal Legalization<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The poll underscores a growing disconnect between federal law (which classifies cannabis as Schedule I) and public sentiment. Advocates argue this data could accelerate reforms like the&nbsp;<strong>SAFER Banking Act<\/strong>&nbsp;or rescheduling. Meanwhile, states like Florida and Pennsylvania are poised to vote on legalization in 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What\u2019s Next for Cannabis Legalization?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With&nbsp;<strong>70% of Americans<\/strong>&nbsp;supporting legal medical use and&nbsp;<strong>52% backing recreational access<\/strong>, federal reform seems inevitable. However, challenges remain, including standardized dosing regulations and addressing DUIs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Source: https:\/\/norml.org\/news\/2024\/08\/22\/gallup-americans-say-alcohol-tobacco-more-harmful-than-cannabis\/?link_id=10&amp;can_id=727ca046d598a3ab89b24b1212ca3bc2&amp;source=email-norml-weekend-weed-read-8242024&amp;email_referrer=email_2427661&amp;email_subject=norml-weekend-weed-read-8242024<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Findings from the 2024 Gallup Poll The latest Gallup poll reveals a seismic shift in American attitudes toward cannabis. According to the survey,&nbsp;65% of U.S. adults&nbsp;now believe alcohol and tobacco pose greater health risks than marijuana\u2014a stark contrast to decades past. Notably: A Decade of Changing ViewsSince 2013, when Colorado and Washington first legalized&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":12818,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2180,1],"tags":[1842,1841,1847,1507,1845,1846,1840,1844,1839,1843],"class_list":["post-12817","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mind-munchies-en","category-unkategorisiert","tag-alcohol-vs-cannabis-harm","tag-cannabis-legalization-support","tag-cannabis-medical-benefits","tag-cannabis-safety-en","tag-drug-policy-reform","tag-federal-legalization-trends","tag-gallup-poll-results","tag-harmful-substances-perception","tag-public-opinion-on-marijuana","tag-tobacco-health-risks"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12817","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12817"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12817\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13133,"href":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12817\/revisions\/13133"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12818"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12817"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12817"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/treezclub.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12817"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}