Why seniors are turning to marijuana for anxiety

Benzinga Cannabis is provided exclusively by Brendan Bures, provided by The Fresh Toast.

New research shows that anxiety is a common reason geriatric patients turn to medical marijuana.

Teenagers have consumed marijuana less and less in legal states. Baby boomers have taken their place. Baby boomers have become an important and growing segment of the cannabis consumer, according to a consumer report by BDS Analytics last year. More adults are using marijuana more than ever. In February of this year, a February study showed that the use of marijuana among adults ages 65 and over had risen 75% in the past three years.

The older consumers were using more marijuana, despite the fact that they were not able to explain it. A brand new study published in The American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatric may provide answers. The researchers from the University of California, San Diego compiled self-administered data from 568 patients who visited the university's geriatric clinic over 12 weeks. If, why, and how seniors used cannabis, what kind of marijuana do they use CBD or THC? How it helped treat symptoms, and how it was used for a lifetime.

Older adults are more likely to choose to use cannabis for medicinal reasons over recreational reasons. Pain, sleep, and anxiety were the most common medical reasons. The researchers wanted to understand why older adults turned to marijuana for anxiety.

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The authors of the study found that anxiety was a common reason for using cannabis among older adults. Use of cannabis for anxiety is perceived to be helpful in alleviating symptoms. People who used marijuana to treat anxiety symptoms were more likely to use cannabis with THC, more likely to vape flower and more likely to consume edibles than other patients. More than three-fifths of older patients were first-time users, but another significant portion was familiar with the plant, according to researchers. They also suggested that cannabis could replace polypharmacy in multiple senior patients who use multiple medications to treat different ailments.

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The study's authors added that more research on cannabis in older adults is warranted, including prevalence of use, efficacy in treating anxiety and potential changes in concurrently prescribed anxiolytic medications as a result of cannabis use.