Colorado City Among the Nation’s Top Ten for Overall Drug Use
Ask a Colorado resident about common misconceptions outsiders have about our state and one of the examples they are likely to bring up is that it simply is not true that all Coloradans smoke the devil's lettuce. 12 years ago, Colorado became the first state to legalize recreational marijuana.
In 2024, of the top ten cities in America for marijuana use, not one of them is located here in the state of Colorado.
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The Centennial State was, however, once nicknamed the 'Cocaine Capital' of America. Today, one Colorado city remains in the nation's top ten for overall drug use, and in the top ten for the overall use of cocaine according to the American Addiction Centers.
Colorado City with the Most Overall Drug Use
The city of Colorado Springs, with an estimated population of 403,505, is one of the top ten cities for overall drug use in America. According to AmericaAddictionCenters.org, approximately 64% of the city's population has used marijuana, more than 21% have used cocaine, over 13% have used meth, and 2.6% have used heroin. This places Colorado Springs in 8th place overall when looking at the top ten cities for drug use in the United States.
Colorado City with the Most Overall Cocaine Use
In 2020, according to KDVR.com and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration, 2.24% of the population aged 12 or older reported using cocaine that year. By 2021, that number dipped to 1.81%, which placed Colorado in 20th place overall.
Today, the city of Colorado Springs remains one of the top ten cities nationwide for overall cocaine use, with just over 21% of the city's population admitting to having used cocaine, according to AmericaAddictionCenters.org.
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