A new study says cannabis may not be so relaxing for everyone.
Researchers report that 27% of people who went to an emergency department for cannabis use developed a new anxiety disorder within three years.
The research team from Canada said their research published in the journal eClinical Medicine is the largest study examining the relationship between anxiety and cannabis use.
The researchers looked at more than 12 million people living in Ontario, Canada, between 2008 and 2019, none of whom had ever received treatment or a diagnosis for anxiety.
The team examined the health record data, comparing the risk of developing an anxiety disorder for those who went to an emergency for cannabis use compared to the general population.
The results suggest that individuals requiring emergency department treatment for cannabis use were both at substantially increased risk of developing a new anxiety disorder and experiencing worsening symptoms for already existing anxiety disorders.
Researchers said they found that 27% of the individuals who went to an emergency department for cannabis use were diagnosed with a new anxiety disorder within three years, compared to 5% of the general population — a nearly 4-fold increase after accounting for social factors and other mental health diagnoses.
Researchers said of those already diagnosed 12% of people who went to an emergency room for cannabis use were hospitalized or visited an emergency room again for an anxiety disorder within three years, compared to 1% of the general population — another nearly 4-fold increased risk after accounting for other mental health diagnosis and social factors.
In people who visited an emergency room with cannabis as the main reason, the risk of hospitalization or another emergency visit for an anxiety disorder increased by more than 9 fold compared to the general population.
The researchers also reported that women and men and individuals of all ages going to an emergency room for cannabis use were at elevated risk of developing new anxiety disorders relative to the general population, with men and younger adults (10 to 24 years) at particularly elevated risk.
The scientists acknowledged there’s an ongoing debate about whether cannabis actually causes people to develop anxiety or if their cannabis use reflects a condition already there for which they’re medicating.
However, the researchers said their study indicated that cannabis may make anxiety worse. They also said it’s possible cannabis may delay other evidence-based treatments and may substantially worsen anxiety symptoms.
