With cannabis legal in Ohio, both medically and recreationally, attitudes toward a once-taboo substance have been gradually shifting.
As of May 2026, only 11% of Americans said marijuana should remain illegal altogether, according to Pew Research Center data. More than half of the country lives in a state with legal, recreational cannabis.
But polling commissioned by the OneOhio Recovery Foundation in 2024 concluded that more than half of women, either currently pregnant or wanting to become pregnant, also used cannabis—a statistic that worries health officials.
“Our message really is the same: in pregnancy and in breastfeeding, cannabis is not the safest choice,” Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff told reporters Thursday.
Vanderhoff joined the OneOhio Recovery Foundation and several government agencies for a news conference. OneOhio is allocating $250,000 toward advertising, social media, engagement and educational resources on the issue.
OneOhio Executive Director Alisha Nelson said women often “are navigating a constant stream of advice while trying to make the best decisions for themselves and their babies.”
Research, however, links cannabis use during pregnancy to various growth and cognitive risks for babies, such as stillbirth or low birth weight, since THC will pass through a placenta to a fetus.
“Too often, pregnant women mistakenly assume that because cannabis is legal, and sometimes even labeled as natural product, that it is also safe,” Vanderhoff said.
Nelson and Vanderhoff both encouraged women to discuss it with their doctors, nurses or midwives.
Along with the Ohio Department of Commerce, OneOhio will be dedicating extensive resources—totaling $20 million—toward broader cannabis education in the near future, including on use risks among teenagers and workers. More is available here.
