According to a federally-funded study, more than a 10th of seniors used marijuana in the last day.
The research also shows that among those who do consume cannabis, many use it to simply get high—but that medical reasons are also common.
Researchers from the University of California San Diego, New York University and the University of California San Diego conducted surveys with 315 adults aged 65 or older in New York City’s parks and outside of centers for older adults.
More than half (56%) of respondents said that they had consumed cannabis at least one time in their lives, while 22 percent claimed to have used it in the last year, 16 % reported using it during the previous month, and 11 % said they had consumed it within 24 hours.
The most commonly reported reason for using marijuana was to get high (60 percent), though 56 percent said they consume cannabis to relieve tension, 53 percent use it as a sleep aid, 30 percent utilize it treat chronic pain and 29 percent use marijuana for another medical reason—”reflecting prior evidence that older adults commonly use cannabis to manage these symptoms or medical reasons and suggesting potential unmet clinical needs that physicians should be aware of,” the researchers wrote.
“The most common reasons for using cannabis was to get high (60.0%) or relieve tension (55.7%), sleep (52.9%) or relieve chronic pain (30. %).”
Researchers wrote that the relatively high rates of cannabis usage in the survey “suggests that cannabis use by older adults could be more common and clinically important than suggested by previous evidence.” The paper was published by the Journal of the American Geriatric Society and funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.
However, they said the results might be skewed because New York City is an urban area and has a diverse population, or due to “possible reduced bias due to community-based recruitment in person and brief survey administration which improved completion rates.”
Smoking is the most common method of delivery for marijuana users who used it recreationally during the past year. 36 percent consumed edible cannabis and 16 % vaped it.
According to the study, older women and men are less likely than younger seniors and men to use marijuana.
A new study shows that medical marijuana can help 91 percent older adults with pain, insomnia, mood, or behavioral symptoms.
A separate recent federally funded study published by the American Medical Association (AMA) found that “older adults are increasingly turning to cannabis for symptom management”—with many motivated to try marijuana “as an alternative to traditional pharmaceuticals due to concerns about adverse effects.”
The research showed that older adults were increasingly using cannabis to treat symptoms related to aging. These included pain, sleep problems, and mental concerns.
AMA adopted a separate resolution in this year, which acknowledges both the risks as well as potential therapeutic benefits associated with marijuana use among older people.
Max Pixel provided the photo.
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