Forget those rosy headlines you've seen about drug use being down among young Americans. If you actually read the latest National Survey on Drug Use and Health, it says illicit toking, snorting and injecting is actually up in these here United States of America.

The data shows that overall drug use among folks 12 years and older was up to 9.2 percent of us from 8.1 percent in 2008. Even if you compare that to 2011's 8.9 percent we have an increase:

If you look at the years from 2002 to 2008, when drug use ranged from 7.9 to 8.3 percent of the public, the 2012 figure looks even bigger.

The survey asks people if they've used a drug in the last month.

Marijuana, of course, was king, with the number of users increasing from 14.5 million in 2007 to 18.9 million in 2012.

Yes, young people did mellow out on the toking, snorting and injecting. The survey says the rate of drug use among those 18 to 25 in 2012 was 5.3 percent, down from 2009's 6.4 percent.

So where's this increase coming from? The old folks! (Whoo-hoo!).

Drug use rates for those 50 to 54 went from 3.4 percent in 2002 to 7.2 percent 2012 For the 55 to 59 set it went from 1.9 percent in 2002 to 6.6 percent in 2012.

Blame, perhaps, the convenience of our many cannabis dispensaries in America's 20 or so weed-legal states. No senior citizen wants to stalk a street corner for drugs.

That, perhaps then, is progress.

Read more of the latest drug stats here.

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