Study Links Marijuana Dependence to Increased Risk of Death

A new study links marijuana dependence to an increased risk of death, The New York Times reports.

Canadian researchers identified 106,994 people who were diagnosed with cannabis use disorder during an emergency department visit or hospitalization between 2006 and 2021, and linked the records with vital statistics records.

They found hospital and emergency room patients who were diagnosed with cannabis use disorder died at almost three times the rate of people without the disorder over the next five years. Patients with the disorder were 10 times as likely to die by suicide as those in the general population and were also more likely to die from trauma, drug poisonings and lung cancer.

An editorial accompanying the study stated, “Though gaps remain in our knowledge about the health effects of cannabis use, the current evidence is enough to sound an alarm; cannabis is addictive; cannabis use disorder is on the rise; and those affected by cannabis use disorder are at an increased risk of premature death.”

A second study by the same research group found that more cases of schizophrenia and psychosis in Canada have been linked to cannabis use disorder since marijuana was legalized.