Global survey of 107,000 people finds cannabis smoked at home more often than tobacco

Q: Why might people smoke cannabis at home more often than tobacco?

The researchers suggest in-home cannabis smoking may be more socially acceptable than tobacco smoking, possibly because public anti-smoking campaigns have focused primarily on tobacco while cannabis norms are less established.

Q: Did non-users report secondhand exposure equally for both?

Yes. Among non-users of both substances, about 20% reported in-home exposure to cannabis smoke and tobacco smoke, suggesting similar rates of secondhand exposure from others in the household.

Among over 107,000 respondents from 17 countries, in-home cannabis smoking was more prevalent than in-home tobacco smoking, suggesting cannabis may be more socially acceptable to smoke indoors.

Bellettiere, John et al.·Addictive behaviors·2022·Moderate EvidenceCross-Sectional

Respiratory (136)Harm Reduction (776)

Quick Facts

Study Type

Cross-Sectional

Evidence

Moderate Evidence

Sample

N=107,272

What This Study Found

Among cannabis-only users, 78.8% reported past-year in-home cannabis smoking, compared to 67.9% of tobacco-only users smoking tobacco at home. Among dual users, in-home cannabis smoking (82.8%) also exceeded in-home tobacco smoking (75.9%, p<0.001).

Key Numbers

107,272 respondents; 53.6% reported in-home cannabis smoking; 50.6% in-home tobacco smoking. Among dual users: 82.8% smoked cannabis at home vs. 75.9% tobacco. Top responding countries: Germany (32%), USA (10%), New Zealand (9%).

How They Did This

Cross-sectional analysis of 107,272 adults (mean age 30, 34% women) from 17 countries who completed the Global Drug Survey 2019. Respondents were categorized as cannabis-only users, tobacco-only users, dual users, or non-users.

Why This Research Matters

As tobacco home-smoking bans have reduced secondhand smoke exposure, cannabis appears to be exempt from similar social norms, creating a potential gap in household air quality protections.

The Bigger Picture

Public health campaigns have successfully denormalized indoor tobacco smoking, but similar messaging about cannabis smoking has not kept pace. As cannabis legalization expands, the gap between tobacco and cannabis home-smoking norms may widen.

What This Study Doesn't Tell Us

Global Drug Survey respondents are self-selected and skew toward drug-interested populations. Cross-sectional design. No measurement of actual smoke exposure or health outcomes. Some countries had low response rates.

Questions This Raises

?Does in-home cannabis smoking produce comparable secondhand exposure to tobacco?
?Are children in these households affected?
?Would cannabis-specific clean air policies change behavior?

Trust & Context

Key Stat:: 79% of cannabis users smoked at home vs. 68% of tobacco users
Evidence Grade:: Very large international sample, but self-selected respondents limit generalizability.
Study Age:: Published in 2022 using 2019 survey data.
Original Title:: In-home cannabis smoking more prevalent than in-home tobacco smoking among 2019 Global Drug Survey respondents.
Published In:: Addictive behaviors, 125, 107130 (2022)
Authors:: Bellettiere, John(7), Liles, Sandy(7), Posis, Alexander Ivan B(2), Anuskiewicz, Blake, Tripathi, Osika, Nguyen, Benjamin, Chavez, Paul, Zhu, Shu-Hong, Park, Ji-Yeun, Winstock, Adam, Ferris, Jason
Database ID:: RTHC-03703

Evidence Hierarchy

Meta-Analysis / Systematic Review

Randomized Controlled Trial

Cohort / Case-Control

Cross-Sectional / ObservationalSnapshot without intervening

This study

Case Report / Animal Study

A snapshot of a population at one point in time.

What do these levels mean? →

Frequently Asked Questions

Why might people smoke cannabis at home more often than tobacco?

The researchers suggest in-home cannabis smoking may be more socially acceptable than tobacco smoking, possibly because public anti-smoking campaigns have focused primarily on tobacco while cannabis norms are less established.

Did non-users report secondhand exposure equally for both?

Yes. Among non-users of both substances, about 20% reported in-home exposure to cannabis smoke and tobacco smoke, suggesting similar rates of secondhand exposure from others in the household.

Cite This Study

RTHC-03703·https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-03703

APA

Bellettiere, John; Liles, Sandy; Posis, Alexander Ivan B; Anuskiewicz, Blake; Tripathi, Osika; Nguyen, Benjamin; Chavez, Paul; Zhu, Shu-Hong; Park, Ji-Yeun; Winstock, Adam; Ferris, Jason. (2022). In-home cannabis smoking more prevalent than in-home tobacco smoking among 2019 Global Drug Survey respondents.. Addictive behaviors, 125, 107130. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.107130

MLA

Bellettiere, John, et al. "In-home cannabis smoking more prevalent than in-home tobacco smoking among 2019 Global Drug Survey respondents.." Addictive behaviors, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.107130

RethinkTHC

RethinkTHC Research Database. "In-home cannabis smoking more prevalent than in-home tobacco..." RTHC-03703. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/bellettiere-2022-inhome-cannabis-smoking-more

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Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.

This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkTHC research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.

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