Compared with those subjects who reported using both substances, cannabis-only youth were more likely to receive good grades (77.5 to 66.6%), play sports (85.5 to 66.7%), and live with both parents (78.2 to 68.3%). Cannabis-only youth were also less likely to have been drunk in the past 30 days (40.5 to 55%) or have used other illegal drugs (8.4 to 17.9%).

Compared to those subjects who abstained from pot and tobacco, teens who reported using cannabis only were more likely to participate in sports and have a good relationship with friends. Cannabis-only youth received similar grades compared to those who did not smoke pot, but were more likely to report having skipped class. Youth who abstained from pot were more likely to report having a strong relationship with their parents; however, cannabis-only youth did not report suffering from higher rates of depression.

Investigators concluded: "Cannabis-only adolescents show better functioning than those who use tobacco. Compared with abstainers, they are more socially driven and do not seem to have psychosocial problems at a higher rate." Of course, this study isn't generally something you'll see on CNN or other U.S. mainstream media outlets, unlike U.S. government-funded studies that purport to show marijuana's harmful effects, which always seem to get extensive news coverage.

 

That said, Fox News has an online story here:  http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,308258,00.html 

 

Other than the Fox News story, only Reason Magazine's blog and United Press International have covered the study - which was just published in the November issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

 

Full text of the study: "Characteristics of cannabis users who have never smoked tobacco," Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Nov. 2007: