PhD Program in Public Health, School of Medicine, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Cra 30 No 45-03, Bogotá, Colombia.
School of Medicine, Research and Innovation Direction, Hospital Universitario Nacional de Colombia, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia.
Transl Behav Med. 2022 Jul 7;12(6):734-741. doi: 10.1093/tbm/ibac038.
After alcohol and tobacco, cannabis is the third most used substance among young Colombian adults, and many consume alcohol and cannabis concomitantly. However, academics have debated whether these substances substitute or complement each other among consumers. Understanding the relationship between the price and demand for psychoactive substances can clarify consumption patterns and help to develop strategies to reduce harmful consumption. This paper summarizes worldwide evidence of both complementary and substitution relationships and discusses the most probable relationship types in Colombia based on its substance use patterns and current regulations. Like other countries, Colombia is considering legalizing recreational cannabis use. However, there is a growing concern that legalization would increase the negative impacts of cannabis and increase alcohol use among the young adult population. The lack of Colombian empirical studies about the impacts of legal changes on the cannabis market makes it difficult to predict how such changes would affect demand and price elasticities.
继酒精和烟草之后，大麻是哥伦比亚青年成年人中使用的第三大物质，许多人同时消费酒精和大麻。然而，学术界一直在争论这些物质在消费者中是相互替代还是互补。了解精神活性物质的价格和需求之间的关系，可以澄清消费模式，并有助于制定减少有害消费的策略。本文总结了全球范围内关于这两种物质互补和替代关系的证据，并根据哥伦比亚的物质使用模式和现行法规讨论了最有可能的关系类型。与其他国家一样，哥伦比亚正在考虑将娱乐性大麻合法化。然而，人们越来越担心合法化会增加大麻的负面影响，并增加青年成年人的酒精使用。由于缺乏关于法律变化对大麻市场影响的哥伦比亚实证研究，因此很难预测这些变化将如何影响需求和价格弹性。
