Cannabis use is on the rise in the United States with daily or near-daily marijuana use estimated at 1 in every 12 young adults. A large concern is as marijuana becomes more accessible for cannabis use disorder (CUD) may increase. The current study aims to look a CUD in regular marijuana users to see how variables are associated with symptoms.
Participants were recruited from a Colorado university and had to report marijuana use last week, report at least weekly use, and test positive on a THC urine screen. 99 young adults met criteria and average age was 20.32 years. Participants were asked about marijuana use in the previous month, how many times they used during the weekday vs weekend, and the age when they began using it regularly. Alcohol use was assessed by asking how many drinks they consumed on drinking days in the previous month. Anxiety and depression were also assessed by asking about symptoms of both. The comprehensive marijuana motives questionnaire asked participants 36 total items revolving around coping motives such as “How often do you use marijuana to forget your problems.” The final measure was o assess if participants qualified for CUD.
Mean age of regular marijuana use was 17.6 with a range of 13-26 years. The average days of use over the previous 30 was 23 days with an average of use 3.56 times on weekends. The mean number of CUD symptoms was found to be 4.81 with a range of 0-11. 90.9% of participants met criteria for CUD. The highest endorsed symptom was tolerance (71.7%). Age of regular use was negatively associated with CUD symptoms and average daily drinks along with frequency of marijuana use was positively associated. With the high percentage of marijuana users presenting with CUD symptoms, prevention and intervention efforts should be increased at universities to help reduce negative outcomes associated with marijuana use.
Take Away: The current study aims to look a CUD in regular marijuana users to see how variables are associated with symptoms. Participants were recruited from a Colorado university and had to report marijuana use. 99 young adults met criteria and measures included marijuana use, alcohol use, anxiety and depression, comprehensive marijuana motives, and CUD symptoms and diagnosis. Mean age of regular marijuana use was 17.6 and the average days of use over the previous 30 was 23 days. The mean number of CUD symptoms was found to be 4.81 and 90.9% of participants met criteria for CUD. Average daily drinks along with frequency of marijuana use was positively associated. Prevention and intervention efforts should be increased at universities to help reduce negative outcomes associated with marijuana use.