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RESEARCH

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Young people drink and smoke less than ever, but those in the Basque Country are at the forefront of cannabis use

The ESTUDES report notes that alcohol, tobacco and cannabis use among adolescents in the Basque Country has fallen to the lowest levels in the last 25 years, although the Basque Country is at the forefront of cannabis use among children aged 14 to 18 and has the highest rate of state drunkenness.

alemania berlin cannabis efe
Photo: EFE

The latest Survey on the Use of Drugs in Secondary Education (ESTUDES 2025), published by the Spanish Observatory on Drugs and Addictions, shows that Basque youth aged 14 to 18 drink and smoke less than previous generations.

In the last twelve months, alcohol consumption has fallen by almost three points, while tobacco and cannabis consumption have fallen by more than six points. Overall, they are the lowest values recorded in the last 25 years. Experts say there is a higher perception of risk, and the key to this change is to introduce physical exercise into young people's routines.

However, the report has left shadows: the Basque Country is the community with the highest prevalence of cannabis use among students (23.9% of young people admit to having consumed it in the last year) and is also at the top of thestate drunkenness ranking: 23.1% of minors admit to having drunk in the last month.

Tobacco, for its part, continues to decline: only 18.2 per cent of Basque youth have smoked in the last 30 daysand the State average is 15.4 per cent, while the use of e-cigarettes remains stable: 35.6 per cent have used them in the last year, very close to the State average.

Despite these figures, the general trend is to improve. Today's teenagers are more aware of the effects of drug useand are consolidating as the healthiest generation in the 21st century.

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