Last updated : December 16, 2024
American Addiction Centers recently posted an article on its website breaking down the differences among them as far as alcohol, drug use, and addiction are concerned among the Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, and Gen Z. Our title gives away the findings regarding who uses the most drugs and the answer shouldn’t surprise us.
After all, young people experimenting with drugs and alcohol are considered “rights of passage” by many American citizens. That line of thinking most likely came to be during the 1960s. Young people who were stressed out by ongoing wars, the draft, and other grievances began grabbing hold of the “make love, not war” vibes. The hope of something better caused them to become willing guinea pigs to prove Timothy Leary‘s theory. They “turned on, tuned in, and dropped out.”
The “trend” has continued and recreational drug use in our country began to grow… And grow. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) showed that roughly 40% of adults reporting between the ages of 26 and 49 suffered from mental health issues or substance use disorder. This compares to 21% of adults aged 50 and older reporting the same.
Did Baby Boomers pave the way?
Baby Boomers—those born between 1946 and 1964—earned their name from the huge surge in population growth that occurred after World War II. This age group was raised on the heels of the Great Depression. Their youth was a turbulent time. Wars, establishing the draft, and other political unrest created a harsh introduction to adulthood.
Many young people chose to “find their own way” and experimenting with drugs was heralded to be “the way” to do it. Sadly, addiction and death due to drug overdoses awaited many.
The 2022 NSDUH Survey reported that 3 million Baby Boomers between the ages of 60 and 64 and 3.9 million of them over 65 were diagnosed with a substance use disorder. The prior report listed roughly the same numbers for the 60 to 64 age group. In the 65 and older category, though, they had decreased by approximately half a million people.
This points, of course, to the reason being that they had died rather than recovering from the disorder. And we dare say that the odds are that these people lived with their addiction for the majority of their lives.
The report also revealed that marijuana use among Boomers significantly increased between 2021 and 2022. The numbers jumped from 2.8 million to 4 million for the 60 to 64 age group. They increased by nearly a million from 3.8 million to 4.7 million for those 65 and older. Of course, this can be attributed to marijuana legalization.
However, when taking that trip down memory lane, most were shocked to discover that the marijuana sold today is far more potent than the drug they remember enjoying in the past.
Breaking down other drug use:
The 2022 report revealed that 747,000 people aged 60-64 and 995,000 people aged 65 and older use opioids. As a matter of fact, the 60 to 64 age group outpaced that of people in their twenties and fifties.
Prescription benzodiazepines were misused by 238,000 people in the 60-64 age group between the 2021 and 2022 reports.
There weren’t any reported cocaine users in the 65 and older group of Boomers, but those 60-64 ranked in around 336,000. That’s higher than reported for the age groups between 45 to 59.
We were shocked by the increase in methamphetamine use for people aged 60-64. It jumped from 171,000 users in 2021 to 400,000 people in 2022.
Generation X weighs in
People born between the years of 1965 and 1980 make up Generation X and they are now in their 40s and 50s. They are known as the “computer generation” due to the explosive technological advances made during those years.
Overall, drug use increased in this age bracket from the 2021 to the 2022 NSDUH report with the exception of the 55 to 59 age group. Those just younger, 50 to 54 years of age, increased from 2.9 million to 3.6 million from 2021 to 2022.
Happily, the number of people seeking treatment for their substance use disorders increased from 2.9 million in 2021 to 3.6 million in 2022.
Drug use among this generation breaks down as follows:
Marijuana use rose among all the Gen X age groups from 2021 to 2022 with the highest being in the 50-54 age group. The numbers increased from 3.3 million in 2021 to 4.2 million in 2022.
Misusing opioids was reported by 605,000 people aged 50-54.
Prescription benzodiazepine was misused by 311,000 in the 45-49 age range, but it was the lowest number of the four generations surveyed with the exception of those 26-29 years old.
How many Millennials?
The Millennials came of age around the turn of the 21st century and were born between the years of 1981 and 1996. They’re known for being raised with the influence of the internet, have experienced war or political conflict for most of their lifetimes, and have been significantly impacted by economic change during this last decade.
The 30-34 age group is struggling the most with substance use reporting 5.66 million people admitting they have a problem on the 2022 survey. Nearly one and a half million of them sought treatment during the year.
According to the NSDUH, drug use among this generation breaks down as follows:
As with other generations, marijuana use increased from 2021 to 2022. The 30-34 age group showed the largest increase—from 6.45 million in 2021 to 8 million in 2022! Again, we don’t doubt that legalization plays a large role in the increased numbers and is more than double that of people aged 50 to 64.
Millennials aged 26-29 turned away from opioid use as the numbers dropped from 825,000 Gen Xers to 655,000 in 2022. The 30-34 age group reported that 1 million people misused the drug.
The 35-39 age group rated second highest of those who used cocaine during 2022 with 470,000 reported users.
Methamphetamine use among Millennials aged 30-34 was up by 100,000 from 2021. There are 406,000 people represented in that age bracket.
Gen Z and drug use
The youngest generation to come of age consists of people who were born between the years of 1997 and 2012. Gen Z hasn’t experienced the events that played a part in shaping past generations. They don’t have memories of 9/11, for instance, or the wars that followed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Moreover, they have always had internet access and a wide array of other technologies that have shaped their sense of being closely connected to the world around them.
When breaking Gen Z down into two groups, the 12-17 age group reported fewer substance abuse disorders than in 2021. The 18-25 age group, however, reported a change from 8.76 million in 2021 to 9.66 million in 2022. And, reportedly, only 1 million of Gen Zers aged 21 to 25 received treatment.
The facts and figures regarding Gen Z drug use during 2022 are as follows:
Nearly 13.3 million people aged 18 to 25 reported using marijuana.
Opioid use among the 18-25 age bracket increased, but only slightly, from 1.07 million to 1.12 million. However, use dropped in the 21-25 subgroup from 732,000 to 708,000.
Misuse of prescription benzodiazepines decreased in both the 12 to 17 and 18 to 25 age groups from 2021 to 2022. However, the 21 to 25 age group had the highest usage numbers for all 5 generational groups surveyed.
Cocaine has proved to be a trending drug in the 21 to 25-year-old age group. It has the highest overall use among the generations.
Methamphetamines aren’t high on Gen Z’s popularity list with only 124,000 reported users during 2022.
Twisted thinking
Drugs are more accessible now than ever as they continue to pour into our country across our open borders. Internet connections can be made for those who don’t want to take to the streets looking for their fix. And some wonder if marijuana legalization is paving the way to legalize other drugs in the not-so-distant future.
It seems as if experimenting with drug use is still thought to be a “normal” life process as adults come of age. There’s a huge downside to this line of thinking though. Drugs contaminated with fentanyl are causing experimenters to drop dead. Some died by overdose the first time they ever used drugs. Many of those who survive may not be aware of the fact yet but are doomed to struggle with addiction for their entire lives.
We have to keep teaching our youth that life without drugs is a far better path to take. The drug-free life they lead will be filled with positive experiences to treasure. Drug use tends to lead to a life fraught with experiences that many would rather forget.
