Pot use increasingly linked to addiction, psychosis
A rising tide of cannabis-related mental health problems is resulting from the widespread legalization of recreational weed in the United States, warns a new evidence review.
Nearly 1 in 5 Americans aged 12 and older used marijuana in 2021, and more than 16 million meet the criteria for a diagnosis of cannabis use disorder, researchers wrote.
Further, nearly half of those with cannabis use disorder have another psychiatric condition like anxiety, depression or post-traumatic stress disorder, said review author Dr. David Gorelick, a professor of psychiatry the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore.
“There is a lot of misinformation in the public sphere about cannabis and its effects on psychological health, with many assuming that this drug is safe to use with no side effects,”
Gorelick said in a news release.
Weed use accounts for 10% of all drug-related ER visits in the United States, according to the review published recently in the New England Journal of Medicine.
There are seven recognized disorders related to cannabis use, the report said. Some include cannabis-induced anxiety disorder, cannabis-induced psychotic disorder, cannabis-induced sleep disorder and cannabis-induced delirium. The last one manifests as hyperactivity, agitation and disorientation with hallucinations.
There’s also cannabis use disorder, which is defined as problematic marijuana use. Symptoms include craving weed and using it even as it disrupts people’s lives, causing them to miss important family obligations or to do poorly in school or at work.
Cannabis use disorder is most common in people who use weed more than four days a week, researchers said.
Young adults ages 18 to 25 are disproportionately affected by cannabis use disorder, with more than 14% of people in this age group struggling with weed use.