POT USE AMONG YOUNG CLIMBING, STUDY SAYS

Canada is in no danger of turning into a nation of potheads. But the
number of Canadians, especially younger ones, who admit to indulging
in marijuana and hashish almost doubled over a 13-year period,
according to a new Statistics Canada report.

The federal agency says about three million Canadians aged 15 and
older, or 12.2 per cent, admitted in 2002 to using the two cannabis
substances in the previous 12 months.

This was up from 6.5 per cent who reported use of cannabis in 1989,
and 7.4 per cent in 1994.

Pot use peaked among 18- and 19-year-olds. Almost four in 10 -- 38 per
cent -- reported using marijuana and hashish in the previous year.

Among those ages 15 through 17, the rate was 29 per cent, or almost
three in 10.

Usage drops off the older Canadians get. It drops to six per cent
among those 45 to 54 years of age, and virtually disappears after age
65.

Men in almost all age groups were more likely to use marijuana and
hashish than women.

The head of a group advocating regulated legalization of marijuana
said the trend exposes the ludicrousness of existing laws that make
possession of pot a criminal offence.

"The legal status of the drug has very little to do with whether
people use it," said Eugene Oscapella of the Canadian Foundation for
Drug Policy. "All we're doing is continuing to criminalize millions
and millions of Canadians. I mean three million Canadians have used it
in the past year, are they really criminals?"

The legislation, which has prompted fierce opposition, is in
limbo.

Prime Minister Paul Martin told reporters Wednesday, after the first
meeting of his new cabinet, the legislation would be reintroduced
after Parliament resumes in October.

The Statistics Canada study, based on data from the Canadian Community
Health Survey, also showed Canadians were significantly less likely to
use cocaine/crack, ecstasy, LSD, speed/amphetamines and heroin.