Study Links Marijuana Legalization to Decrease in Anxiety Medications

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A new study published in JAMA Network Open reveals that the legalization of cannabis, whether medical or recreational, is associated with significant changes in the use of prescription medications for mental health disorders.

Anxiety pills.

The study, which analyzed data from over 9.4 million commercially insured patients, found a notable reduction in the dispensing of benzodiazepines—medications commonly used to treat anxiety—following increased access to cannabis.

According to the study’s abstract, “Medical cannabis laws were associated with a 12.4% reduction in the benzodiazepine fill rate,” while recreational cannabis laws led to a 15.2% reduction. These decreases indicate that more people may be substituting cannabis for medications that carry risks of dependency and severe side effects, such as respiratory depression.

The study found that medical cannabis laws “were associated with a 1.3% reduction in the mean number of benzodiazepine fills per patient… [they] were associated with a 3.9% reduction in mean days’ supply per benzodiazepine fill… [and] recreational dispensaries were associated with a 6.2% reduction.”

However the study did find that “Medical cannabis laws were associated with a 3.8% increase in antidepressant fills, and medical dispensaries were associated with an 8.8% increase”.

Researchers conclude:

This cross-sectional study of commercially insured patients suggests that there may have been meaningful heterogeneous associations between cannabis policy and state and between cannabis policy and drug class (eg, decreases in dispensing of benzodiazepines but increases in dispensing of antidepressants and antipsychotics). This finding suggests additional clinical research is needed to understand the association between cannabis use and mental health. The results have implications for patient substance use and mental health–related outcomes.

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