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Beyond the high: Mapping patterns of use and motives for use of cannabis as medicine

BACKGROUND: In Denmark the boundaries between cannabis as an illicit drug and licit medicine have shifted rapidly in recent years, affecting also policy. However, the vast majority of Danes, who use cannabis as medicine (CaM) continue to rely on the unregulated market for supply. This study explores...

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Autores principales: Kvamme, Sinikka L., Pedersen, Michael M., Alagem-Iversen, Sagi, Thylstrup, Birgitte
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: SAGE Publications 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8899253/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35310614
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1455072520985967
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author Kvamme, Sinikka L.
Pedersen, Michael M.
Alagem-Iversen, Sagi
Thylstrup, Birgitte
author_facet Kvamme, Sinikka L.
Pedersen, Michael M.
Alagem-Iversen, Sagi
Thylstrup, Birgitte
author_sort Kvamme, Sinikka L.
collection PubMed
description BACKGROUND: In Denmark the boundaries between cannabis as an illicit drug and licit medicine have shifted rapidly in recent years, affecting also policy. However, the vast majority of Danes, who use cannabis as medicine (CaM) continue to rely on the unregulated market for supply. This study explores patterns of use and motives for use of CaM in Denmark. METHODS: An anonymous online survey was made available to a convenience sample of users of CaM from July 14, 2018 to November 1, 2018. Participants were recruited through patient organisations, social and public media, and the illegal open cannabis market. RESULTS: Of the final sample (n = 3,021), a majority were women (62.6%) and the mean age was 49 years. Most had no prescription for CaM (90.9%), a majority had no or limited previous experience with recreational cannabis use (63.9%), and had used CaM for two years or less (65.0%). The most common form of intake was oil (56.8%) followed by smoke (24.0%). CBD oil (65.0%) was used more than hash, pot or skunk (36.2%). Most frequent conditions treated were chronic pain (32.0%), sleep disturbances (27.5%), stress (23.7%), osteoarthritis (22.7%), anxiety (19.6%), and depression (19.6%). Overall, users experienced CaM to be effective in managing somatic and mental health conditions and reported relatively few side-effects. CBD oil only users were more likely to be women, older, have limited recreational experience and have initiated use recently. CONCLUSIONS: A new user group has emerged in Denmark that, for the most part, use illegally sourced CaM to treat a broad range of somatic and mental health conditions, often with experienced effect and relatively low level of side-effects. The prevalent use of low-potency CBD oil indicates an interest in effects beyond the high normally associated with cannabis use. More clinical research into the effects and side-effects of CaM is needed to draw the boundaries of the medical utility of cannabis.
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spelling pubmed-88992532022-03-17 Beyond the high: Mapping patterns of use and motives for use of cannabis as medicine Kvamme, Sinikka L. Pedersen, Michael M. Alagem-Iversen, Sagi Thylstrup, Birgitte Nordisk Alkohol Nark Research Reports BACKGROUND: In Denmark the boundaries between cannabis as an illicit drug and licit medicine have shifted rapidly in recent years, affecting also policy. However, the vast majority of Danes, who use cannabis as medicine (CaM) continue to rely on the unregulated market for supply. This study explores patterns of use and motives for use of CaM in Denmark. METHODS: An anonymous online survey was made available to a convenience sample of users of CaM from July 14, 2018 to November 1, 2018. Participants were recruited through patient organisations, social and public media, and the illegal open cannabis market. RESULTS: Of the final sample (n = 3,021), a majority were women (62.6%) and the mean age was 49 years. Most had no prescription for CaM (90.9%), a majority had no or limited previous experience with recreational cannabis use (63.9%), and had used CaM for two years or less (65.0%). The most common form of intake was oil (56.8%) followed by smoke (24.0%). CBD oil (65.0%) was used more than hash, pot or skunk (36.2%). Most frequent conditions treated were chronic pain (32.0%), sleep disturbances (27.5%), stress (23.7%), osteoarthritis (22.7%), anxiety (19.6%), and depression (19.6%). Overall, users experienced CaM to be effective in managing somatic and mental health conditions and reported relatively few side-effects. CBD oil only users were more likely to be women, older, have limited recreational experience and have initiated use recently. CONCLUSIONS: A new user group has emerged in Denmark that, for the most part, use illegally sourced CaM to treat a broad range of somatic and mental health conditions, often with experienced effect and relatively low level of side-effects. The prevalent use of low-potency CBD oil indicates an interest in effects beyond the high normally associated with cannabis use. More clinical research into the effects and side-effects of CaM is needed to draw the boundaries of the medical utility of cannabis. SAGE Publications 2021-02-25 2021-06 /pmc/articles/PMC8899253/ /pubmed/35310614 http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1455072520985967 Text en © The Author(s) 2021 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits non-commercial use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).
spellingShingle Research Reports
Kvamme, Sinikka L.
Pedersen, Michael M.
Alagem-Iversen, Sagi
Thylstrup, Birgitte
Beyond the high: Mapping patterns of use and motives for use of cannabis as medicine
title Beyond the high: Mapping patterns of use and motives for use of cannabis as medicine
title_full Beyond the high: Mapping patterns of use and motives for use of cannabis as medicine
title_fullStr Beyond the high: Mapping patterns of use and motives for use of cannabis as medicine
title_full_unstemmed Beyond the high: Mapping patterns of use and motives for use of cannabis as medicine
title_short Beyond the high: Mapping patterns of use and motives for use of cannabis as medicine
title_sort beyond the high: mapping patterns of use and motives for use of cannabis as medicine
topic Research Reports
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8899253/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/35310614
http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1455072520985967
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