The nearby availability of legal medical cannabis improved the mental health of older people, according to the findings of a recent study. The research from authors at the libertarian think tank the Cato Institute found that legally accessible medical cannabis “improved self-reported mental health among people aged 65 years and older.”
In a brief on the research, the authors note that the association between the availability of medical cannabis and mental health seems to be limited to seniors. Among all adults, “medical cannabis availability was not associated with self-reported poor mental health,” the authors of the study wrote, online cannabis news source Marijuana Moment reported last week. “Collectively, these results suggest medical cannabis availability has limited mental health effects on the population at large, with considerable mental health benefits for older adults.”
To conduct the study, researchers analyzed data collected between 2011 and 2021 by the New York Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. This telephone survey gathers information about the health, health-related risk behaviors, and sociodemographic characteristics of respondents. As part of the survey, respondents are asked how many days in the past month they had experienced poor mental health.
The authors of the study note that New York had regulated medical cannabis dispensaries between 2015 and 2021. The researchers used information about medical cannabis dispensary openings and the distances from the businesses to the zip codes of survey respondents to calculate the drive times between the zip codes of each survey respondent and the nearest dispensary. They then used the data to “estimate medical cannabis dispensary availability’s effects on self-reported mental health in New York state from 2011 through 2021 using a two-stage difference-in-differences approach to minimize bias introduced from the staggered opening of dispensaries.”
The study found that among adults aged 65 and older, living within 30 minutes of a medical cannabis dispensary “decreased the probability having a poor mental health day in the past month by about 10 percent,” which they point out was “a 3.5 percentage point decrease from an original probability of roughly 36 percent.”
“What may explain our finding that medical cannabis availability improves the self-reported mental health of people aged 65 and above? Likely pain relief,” the authors wrote. “Cannabis is a good treatment for chronic pain caused by nerve disease (neuropathy)—the most common justification for medical cannabis and a common chronic condition among older adults.”
Researchers Say Findings Should Guide Policy
The researchers added that lawmakers and other policymakers should take the study’s findings into account, noting that the availability of legal medical cannabis could help stem the use of unregulated and untested hemp-derived cannabinoid products that are now available across the country.
“This is an important consideration for state regulators considering medical and recreational cannabis legalization,” the authors wrote, “and how to approach the proliferation of nondispensary businesses selling close cannabis substitutes, such as Delta 8, THCP, and THCA.”
Despite the evidence that having medical cannabis dispensaries nearby was associated with better mental health among seniors, the authors of the study expressed reservations about more expansive cannabis policy reform. They noted that cannabis use is increasing as more states legalize cannabis while the science on the effects and potential risks of using the drug remains limited.
“Our findings also suggest there is an urgent need to learn more about how cannabis use affects older adults. The federal government has heavily restricted clinical research involving cannabis for decades,” it says. “President Biden reduced many of these restrictions by signing the Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Expansion Act into law in December 2022; however, clinical evidence on the health effects of cannabis will likely remain limited for years to come.”
Discover more ways patients are using cannabis as part of medical treatment, learn more about edibles for seniors, and sign up for NuggMD's Weekly Sesh newsletter for the latest cannabis news, consumer tips, and recommendations.
The information in this article and any included images or charts are for educational purposes only. This information is neither a substitute for, nor does it replace, professional legal advice or medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you have any concerns or questions about laws, regulations, or your health, you should always consult with an attorney, physician or other licensed professional.
